Streaming on Shudder May 17th is NIGHTWATCH: DEMONS ARE FOREVER, the chilling sequel to the Danish cult-classic NIGHTWATCH (1994), which inspired the 1997 U.S. remake starring Ewan McGregor.
22-year-old medical student Emma (Fanny Leander Bornedal) has just taken a job as the night watch in the same forensic department where her parents were once almost killed by the famed psychopathic police inspector Wörmer. The events led to her mother’s suicide, and her father Martin (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) has turned to tranquilizers to suppress the memories. Determined to investigate what exactly happened to them, Emma tracks down and confronts Wörmer, only to unintentionally reawaken his bloodthirst and ignite a violent revenge on everyone who sealed his destiny years ago.
Written and directed by Ole Bornedal (THE POSSESSION), 1994’s Nightwatch was a success in Denmark and was shown at the Fantafestival in 1995. An English-language remake of the film, also directed by Bornedal, was released in 1997. The original Nightwatch was included on a list of the top 100 Danish films as chosen by Kosmorama.
The following review was originally posted on December 2, 2021
This weekend sees the release of a new documentary concerning a subject that’s been covered extensively in the news over the last several years: the refugee crisis in the Middle East. Yes, it’s been part of the political debate, and countless reports have flooded the news outlets, not to mention feature-length and short-subjects “docs”. And yet this one feels fresh and immediate. Perhaps that’s due of the medium as this is an animated feature (well, about 95% of it), proving that that said medium (it’s not a genre) can be used to tell all sorts of stories (remember Spidey grabbing an Oscar, and the stop-motion drama ANOMALISA). Plus it’s a most intimate tale as it’s a coming of age saga related by a man whose later lifestyle would leave him no choice but to FLEE.
This true story of the now-adult Amin (voice of Riz Ahmed) commences in present-day Copenhagen as he is interviewed by a former classmate and friend Jonas (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Amin isn’t eager to share painful childhood memories, as he finishes his education in the US while starting a home with his partner Kaspar. But he indulges his pal with early recollections of growing up in Kabul, during the turbulent 1980s. He romps through the dusty streets while clad in one of his sisters’ dresses, dashing into the kitchen just as his grey-haired mother prepares Dinner. Many of those silver strands came from losing her military pilot husband who was arrested when the new communist regime took power. As the battles crept closer to the city, Amin’s family had no choice but to escape. Luckily his oldest brother, who’s a “cleaner’ in Sweden, meets them in Moscow, the “holding place” until they can join him (he’s trying to get the funds together). Over the next months, the family must hide in the tiny Russian apartment, avoiding the police, as they attempt to leave the country via arduous hiking and a rusted cargo ship all arranged by brutal human traffickers. Through it all, Amin trudges forward while realizing that his sexuality would prevent him from ever returning to his homeland.
Much as with the aforementioned SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE, the art of animation is elevated beyond family fables and musicals, to delve deeply into one man’s journey, both geographic and emotional. And though much of the current animated fare is done digitally, this film harkens back to the golden era of hand-drawn, or 2-D, films with the look of a graphic novel brought to vivid life. The main characters are given a simple outline, the thickness resembling a pen point or perhaps a well-worn marker. Basic curved lines and slashes represent the main features like eyes and noses. The colors are natural and subdued, often bathing the characters in a hue to emphasize their moods or the urgency of the sequence (the blues make us feel the cold during a winter trek through the snowy woods to the “escape vessel”). Yet there’s still room for moments of whimsy that might not have worked with live-action (a wink from an 80s action movie star). Early on, we even get a homage to a sketched MTV staple from A-Ha. Best of all, the choices help us focus on Amin and his family, as the bystanders are often rendered with blank faces, while the most harrowing memories are down with a jittery urgency with silhouettes blurring across pale color swatches. And kudos to the sound mixers who place us right in the middle of brutality, then suddenly escort us to the bliss of the countryside. It’s a triumph for the director Jonas Peter Rasmussen who co-wrote the film with its subject Amin Nawabi (their screen voices, Ahmed and Coster-Waldau, are also part of the producing team). My biggest compliment is that it feels like a feature version of the great shorts from the National Film Board of Canada (the highlight of many traveling animation fests). With its distant approach, FLEE. puts us right in the well-worn shoes of this weary world-explorer.
3 Out of 4
FLEE is now playing in select theatres and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas
This weekend sees the release of a new documentary concerning a subject that’s been covered extensively in the news over the last several years: the refugee crisis in the Middle East. Yes, it’s been part of the political debate, and countless reports have flooded the news outlets, not to mention feature-length and short-subjects “docs”. And yet this one feels fresh and immediate. Perhaps that’s due of the medium as this is an animated feature (well, about 95% of it), proving that that said medium (it’s not a genre) can be used to tell all sorts of stories (remember Spidey grabbing an Oscar, and the stop-motion drama ANOMALISA). Plus it’s a most intimate tale as it’s a coming of age saga related by a man whose later lifestyle would leave him no choice but to FLEE.
This true story of the now-adult Amin (voice of Riz Ahmed) commences in present-day Copenhagen as he is interviewed by a former classmate and friend Jonas (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Amin isn’t eager to share painful childhood memories, as he finishes his education in the US while starting a home with his partner Kaspar. But he indulges his pal with early recollections of growing up in Kabul, during the turbulent 1980s. He romps through the dusty streets while clad in one of his sisters’ dresses, dashing into the kitchen just as his grey-haired mother prepares Dinner. Many of those silver strands came from losing her military pilot husband who was arrested when the new communist regime took power. As the battles crept closer to the city, Amin’s family had no choice but to escape. Luckily his oldest brother, who’s a “cleaner’ in Sweden, meets them in Moscow, the “holding place” until they can join him (he’s trying to get the funds together). Over the next months, the family must hide in the tiny Russian apartment, avoiding the police, as they attempt to leave the country via arduous hiking and a rusted cargo ship all arranged by brutal human traffickers. Through it all, Amin trudges forward while realizing that his sexuality would prevent him from ever returning to his homeland.
Much as with the aforementioned SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE, the art of animation is elevated beyond family fables and musicals, to delve deeply into one man’s journey, both geographic and emotional. And though much of the current animated fare is done digitally, this film harkens back to the golden era of hand-drawn, or 2-D, films with the look of a graphic novel brought to vivid life. The main characters are given a simple outline, the thickness resembling a pen point or perhaps a well-worn marker. Basic curved lines and slashes represent the main features like eyes and noses. The colors are natural and subdued, often bathing the characters in a hue to emphasize their moods or the urgency of the sequence (the blues make us feel the cold during a winter trek through the snowy woods to the “escape vessel”). Yet there’s still room for moments of whimsy that might not have worked with live-action (a wink from an 80s action movie star). Early on, we even get a homage to a sketched MTV staple from A-Ha. Best of all, the choices help us focus on Amin and his family, as the bystanders are often rendered with blank faces, while the most harrowing memories are down with a jittery urgency with silhouettes blurring across pale color swatches. And kudos to the sound mixers who place us right in the middle of brutality, then suddenly escort us to the bliss of the countryside. It’s a triumph for the director Jonas Peter Rasmussen who co-wrote the film with its subject Amin Nawabi (their screen voices, Ahmed and Coster-Waldau, are also part of the producing team). My biggest compliment is that it feels like a feature version of the great shorts from the National Film Board of Canada (the highlight of many traveling animation fests). With its distant approach, FLEE. puts us right in the well-worn shoes of this weary world-explorer.
THE SILENCING WILL BE AVAILABLE ON DIRECTV July 16, 2020 AND IN THEATERS, ON DIGITAL AND ON DEMAND August 14, 2020.
Check out the trailer:
In THE SILENCING, a reformed hunter (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and a sheriff (Annabelle Wallis) are caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse when they set out to track a killer who may have kidnapped the hunter’s daughter five years ago.
THE SILENCING stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Annabelle Wallis, and Hero Fiennes Tiffin
Experience legendary director Brian De Palma’s (Scarface, The Untouchables, The Black Dahlia, Mission: Impossible) brand-new, fast-paced action-thriller when Domino arrives on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital), DVD, and Digital July 30 from Lionsgate. This film is currently available On Demand. Featuring spectacular international sets from Scandinavia to Spain, the film stars Primetime Emmy® nominee Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (2018, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, TV’s “Game of Thrones”), Carice van Houten, and Primetime Emmy® winner Guy Pearce (2011, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries, TV’s “Mildred Pierce”). The Domino Blu-ray and DVD will be available for the suggested retail price of $21.99 and $19.98, respectively.
A Copenhagen police officer, Christian (Nikolaj Coster-Wealdau), seeks justice for his partner’s murder by ISIS member Imran. Determined to hunt Imran down, Christian and Alex (Carice van Houten), a fellow cop and his late partner’s mistress, are unwittingly caught in a deadly cat-and-mouse chase with a duplicitous CIA agent (Guy Pearce) who is using Imran as a pawn to trap other ISIS members. Their quest for revenge becomes a race against time to save their own lives. Directed by Brian De Palma.
CAST Nikolaj Coster-Waldau TV’s “Game of Thrones,” Oblivion,Gods of Egypt Carice van Houten TV’s “Game of Thrones,” Black Book, Valkyrie Eriq Ebouaney Hitman, Transporter 3 Mohammed Azaay TV’s “Deadline,” Layla M. Søren Malling TV’s “The Killing,” A Hijacking Paprika Steen Applause, The Substitute Thomas W. Gabrielsson A Royal Affair, TV’s “The Killing” and Guy Pearce TV’s “The Innocents,” Memento
Exciting news! This will be DePalma’s first film since 2012! DOMINO opens in Theaters May 31st!
In a world wracked by terror and suspicion, Copenhagen police officer, Christian (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), seeks justice for his partner’s murder by an ISIS member named Imran. On the hunt for the killer, Christian and a fellow cop are unwittingly caught in a cat and mouse chase with a duplicitous CIA agent (Guy Pearce) who is using Imran as a pawn to trap other ISIS members. Soon Christian is racing against the clock – not only seeking revenge, but to save his own life.
DOMINO stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Carice van Houten, and Guy Pearce
GODS OF EGYPT is the kind of film that looks like it started out with blockbuster ambitions. With a big name cast that features “Game of Thrones” star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Gerard Butler (“300”), Chadwick Boseman (“42”) and Geoffrey Rush, plus pretty Elodie Yung, and some very expensive-looking visual effects, GODS OF EGYPT seeks to draw on Egyptian mythology to create an action/adventure epic. Unfortunately, this plodding, overweight snoozer never gets off the ground, due to a remarkably dull, confusing script that mixes a little “Thief of Baghdad,” a classic hero plot-line and bits and pieces of Egyptian myth with some remarkably bad dialog, into a hot mess that is more Gordian knot than classic epic.
Director Alex Proyas has created a silly, overblown would-be epic that might stand as an example of bad film-making – or at least boring film-making. Brenton Thwaites plays Bek, a “Thief of Baghdad” type character, who finds himself on a quest with the god Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who has been deposed on the verge of being crowned king of Egypt by his jealous uncle, the god Set (Gerard Butler). In this Egypt, there are no pharaohs and the gods themselves rule and live among mortals, one of several strange things in this movie fantasy universe. Other Egyptian deities join in this would-be saga of a royal coup, such as Thoth (Chadwick Boseman), Hathor (Elodie Yung) and Ra (Geoffrey Rush).
Confused? Not how you remember Egyptian history or myth? Sometimes, this kind of pseudo-historical epic can be saved by clever, funny dialog and charismatic characters. Sadly, neither comes to the rescue here. Despite some good actors in the cast (Geoffrey Rush, for heaven’s sake), they mostly overact under Proyas’ direction, mouthing the script’s nonsensical dialog. But mostly the script is to blame. Although GODS OF EGYPT has more actual Egyptian legend than one expects, it is mashed-up with so much other stuff in a goofy quest tale that even an expert in Egyptian myths would have trouble sorting it out.
The dazzling, golden special effects are sure to lure a few viewers, and the hero tale story seems a perfect draw for preteens, the audience most likely to enjoy this movie. But the movie’s confusing mix of Egyptian gods and myth, rambling plot and lack of effective comic relief might lose even those few.
This film is not one of those “so bad it’s good” movies. No, it is just bad. Rather than laughing at it, one is more likely to nod off, except it is too noisy to do that. This is the kind of movie that makes one want to just leave after about five minutes.
There is nothing to redeem this one, not even the lavish visual effects. Be warned: GODS OF EGYPT is likely to strike you down, with overwhelming boredom, an urge to cringe and a profound regret at spending actual money to see this big-budget turkey.
WAMG has your passes to the advance screening of the upcoming film, GODS OF EGYPT.
Varèse Sarabande will release the GODS OF EGYPT – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack digitally on February 26 and on CD March 25, 2016. The album features the original music composed by Marco Beltrami (the upcoming BEN HUR, THE HURT LOCKER, THE HOMESMAN, SNOWPIERCER and WORLD WAR Z).
“The magnitude of score is beyond anything I have done before,” said Beltrami. “This two and half hour score is the biggest film score project I have ever undertaken, after all these years that it saying something. Just mixing it took over a month but it was all worth it as it is really fun to stretch my wings a bit.”
In this spectacular action-adventure inspired by the classic mythology of Egypt, the survival of mankind hangs in the balance as an unexpected mortal hero Bek [Brenton Thwaites] undertakes a thrilling journey to save the world and rescue his true love. In order to succeed, he must enlist the help of the powerful god Horus [Nikolaj Coster-Waldau] in an unlikely alliance against Set [Gerard Butler], the merciless god of darkness, who has usurped Egypt’s throne, plunging the once peaceful and prosperous empire into chaos and conflict. As their breathtaking battle against Set and his henchmen takes them into the afterlife and across the heavens, both god and mortal must pass tests of courage and sacrifice if they hope to prevail in the epic final confrontation.
“The director Alex Proyas and I did some great research together to create the right sound,” Beltrami described. “We watched some of the great films that reflected the area and sensibility we are going, for such as Raiders of the Lost Ark, Black Narcissus, Lawrence of Arabia together as these were influences of his for the film and wanted the music to perform a similar thematic function. After that I did my best to deliver.”
GODS OF EGYPT will be in theaters February 26, 2016.
WAMG invites you to enter for a chance to win a pass (Good for 2) to the advance screening of GODS OF EGYPT on Wednesday, February 24 at 7PM in the St. Louis area.
We will contact the winners by email.
Answer the following:
Award-winning composer Marco Beltrami has received two Academy Award nominations for Best Score – name the films.
TO ENTER, ADD YOUR NAME, ANSWER AND EMAIL IN OUR COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.
OFFICIAL RULES:
1. YOU MUST BE IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA THE DAY OF THE SCREENING.
2. A pass does not guarantee a seat at a screening. Seating is on a first-come, first served basis. The theater is overbooked to assure a full house. The theater is not responsible for overbooking.
3. No purchase necessary
Rated PG 13 for fantasy violence and action, and some sexuality.
Check out the Big Game TV spot for Lionsgate’s GODS OF EGYPT.
From director Alex Proyas, the movie hits theaters February 26.
In this spectacular action-adventure inspired by the classic mythology of Egypt, the survival of mankind hangs in the balance as an unexpected mortal hero Bek [Brenton Thwaites] undertakes a thrilling journey to save the world and rescue his true love. In order to succeed, he must enlist the help of the powerful god Horus [Nikolaj Coster-Waldau] in an unlikely alliance against Set [Gerard Butler], the merciless god of darkness, who has usurped Egypt’s throne, plunging the once peaceful and prosperous empire into chaos and conflict. As their breathtaking battle against Set and his henchmen takes them into the afterlife and across the heavens, both god and mortal must pass tests of courage and sacrifice if they hope to prevail in the epic final confrontation.
GODS OF EGYPT also stars Chadwick Boseman, Elodie Yung, Courtney Eaton and Geoffrey Rush.
Opening in theaters on February 26, check out the new poster and TV spot for GODS OF EGYPT.
In this spectacular action-adventure inspired by the classic mythology of Egypt, the survival of mankind hangs in the balance as an unexpected mortal hero Bek (Brenton Thwaites) undertakes a thrilling journey to save the world and rescue his true love.
In order to succeed, he must enlist the help of the powerful god Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) in an unlikely alliance against Set (Gerard Butler), the merciless god of darkness, who has usurped Egypt’s throne, plunging the once peaceful and prosperous empire into chaos and conflict. As their breathtaking battle against Set and his henchmen takes them into the afterlife and across the heavens, both god and mortal must pass tests of courage and sacrifice if they hope to prevail in the epic final confrontation.
Chadwick Boseman, Elodie Yung, Courtney Eaton and Geoffrey Rush co-star in director Alex Proyas’ action fantasy.
