This movie is a mature and rational meditation on death - a topic rarely covered to this depth in film. The director (Alejandro Amenábar who did "The Others", etc) does a great job of visualizing the dilemna of being trapped in an unwanted life through imagery of water and flight, and Javier Bardem is awesome as the lead character, who at times almost glows with the certainty of his conviction to his quest. That being said, I did feel it was a tad too long, and on it's opening weekend in a premier movie theatre, I was alone at my screening - I guess everyone was next door meditating on death through Assault on Precinct 13 - which by the way is good - but you've just got to meditate on each death much quicker before the next one comes along...

4 out of 5.

(PS: It did get me thinking that perhaps state sanctioned euthanasia, though something we compassionately grant to our suffering housepets, may not be the best route, because I'm sure it wouldn't take long for the government to start selling mandatory licences or something of that ilk...)

I haven't seen The Sea Inside yet, but I've heard that it raises many of the same questions as Million Dollar Baby, which makes it a more valid comparison to M$B than something like a female Rocky.

Well, the comparison does definitely point out the shallowness of the American perspective on euthanasia compared to the European one! Personally, I found the "female Rocky" first half of M$B to be much better crafted than the maudlin second half. It certainly plays closer to Eastwood's strengths as a director, and is a much better film than Mystic River. However, Alejandro Amenábar's The Sea Inside, while not a perfect movie, exhibits an emotional and visual depth unfathomed by Clint. But, of course, those are just my opinions, I know they'll soon be steamrolled by the M$B lovefest in here...

Bradley, I don't think so, but mostly because not very many people come in here to begin with.

Honestly I see both your points, but that's usually why comparison don't hold up all that well. I actually tend to lean towards "female Rocky" for the reason that while Eastwood deals with euthenasia, it is not the primary focus of the movie. The movie is about a woman who wants to be a boxing champ, and the relationship she forms with her trainer. The ending is a mechanism for showing how fundamentaly they came to understand eachother's needs, desires, and capabilities.

Under The Sea's primary focus is on euthenasia (forgive me if I'm mistaken, I haven't seen it yet). It is not a topic brought up in the last 1/2 hour of a 2 hour movie, it is brought up from the beginning and is an exploration of the space itself, not a vehicle for speaking about something else.

Its one of the reasons I find "foreign" films interesting. Their orientation of subject matter is different. Each country has its own style. South America right now is focussing on transcendental concepts. Its exploring its own history but serving it up as a global metaphor for exploration. Its very interesting.

Spain on the other hand is all over the place, and I've been talkng with people about Madrid lately actually. I think it has to do with Franco...really, 1975 is a long time to go on. Their exploration of new themes and spaces is ten-fold as they've condesnsed alot of raw modernism and energy in the past 20 years. The punk and sexual scenes Almodovar was filming since the early 80's, they rose out of nowhere, since it took about 5 years to build these huge sub-cultures after Franco died. And really PSain is a very aggressive and open space right now for literature and film, etc.

I think that's why we are seeing so many interesting (if not perfectly polished) works out of Spain. Its one of the more creative spaces right not but hasn't been stuck living in some traditional cinematic past in the way *sigh* the Italians have. I for one, can't wait to see Under the Sea, and I'll probably watch it next weekend. I'll be able to give more commentary about its direct content after that.

I really really can't wait to see this movie.

Isn't that the movie where Sebastian the Crab commits suicide by swimming into an orca's mouth?

:wink:

Yes. I was just checking to see if everyone was paying attention...honest.

I guess I'm just a little gun shy, dv. I have almost always expected and received respectful and insightful discussion in this specific forum, however, I'm still surprised by the level of intolerance for my opinion in the broader forums (albeit frequently contrary to the mainstream). I wouldn't have been the least bit surprised if I'd received a typically narrow-minded reply to my comments about M$B - but I suppose I should be more open-minded myself...

:wink:

I had many problems with M$B (To the point where right now I hate it with a passion) but the treatment of euthanasia wasn´t one of them. I agree that the whole thing came from nowhere and It really showed that the script had been assembled from different short stories vaguely related by the boxing topic... It kind of connected, but just barely. But in M$B´s case, I thought they were just using the issue to get a few more tears and show how unfair the World is with the good, honorable, loving characters that were so saintly they made me want to throw up - seriously, I hate that movie, sorry if I offend its fans-.

The sea inside is completely different cause euthanasia is THE issue. It is about a person who wants to die, that is the whole conflict. The powerful part for me is, the guy is so likable, so charming, you really want him to accomplish his goal, but at the same time, you don´t want him to dissappear, to evaporate from his loved ones´ lives. So you spend the whole movie torn by this two feelings, to the point where you really understand that euthanasia is not a black and white discussion, that there are not easy answers, although the movie clearly positionates itself on the side of those who think that we all should be free to decide over our destiny, even if that means death.

And It is also really well done. I hope you had the chance to see it already, Dolce and Lecter. If so, what did you think?