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 Anthropoid 

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 Anthropoid 
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Pure Phase
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Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am
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Post Anthropoid
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Anthropoid is a 2016 UK-French-Czech historical thriller film directed by Sean Ellis, from a screenplay by Ellis and Anthony Frewin, starring Cillian Murphy, Jamie Dornan, Harry Lloyd, Toby Jones, Charlotte Le Bon and Bill Milner. It tells the story of Operation Anthropoid, the World War II assassination of Reinhard Heydrich by Czechoslovak exile soldiers on 27 May 1942.

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Sun Aug 14, 2016 11:36 pm
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Post Re: Anthropoid
During the Second World War, a pair of soldiers (Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan) parachute into the heart of Nazi-controlled Czechoslovakia under cover of night and head toward Prague. Sent by the Czech government in exile, their aim is to assassinate Reinhard Heydrich, a fierce SS chief and the primary architect of the Final Solution. Their assignment, code-named "Operation Anthropoid," is complex and perilous; even if they succeed and avoid capture and death, the German response to such a prominent figure's death will surely be swift and apocalyptic. Though hardly unreported—influential director Fritz Lang dramatized the operation in Hangmen Also Die! only a year after the fact, before many details and identities were made public—Operation Anthropoid is unfortunately a relatively obscure part of WWII history. This despite the powerful and sinister target, as well as the reactionary atrocities committed in its immediate aftermath.

Anthropoid, directed by Sean Ellis (Metro Manila), is a powerful antidote to this ignorance. Filming on location in Prague, Ellis stays very close to the historical record. With a fastidious eye and ear, he recreates the anxiety and suspicion of a seized city, filming late-night subterfuge and conspiratorial private-room meetings with a darting hand-held camera. It is history in the adrenaline-pumping present tense, and the viewer is placed directly inside the protagonists' fraught minds: they have cyanide capsules on their person whilst navigating a precarious environment where every countryman could also be a collaborator. And Ellis devotes the third act to a momentous prolonged action sequence, a furious siege spectacle set in and around a Baroque church. Ellis' blazing fusion of character investment and machine-gun showmanship recalls Sergio Leone, Michael Mann, John Woo, and other masters of motion and mayhem.

A

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Sun Aug 14, 2016 11:38 pm
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Anthropoid

I should have known this would be excellent. It's Sean Ellis, the director behind Cashback and Metro Manila. He managed to make an educational treat but also one of those old-fashioned world war two films where everything is secretive, assassinations are in play, coded messages are the norm, everybody calls each other "comrade", and the fear of the SS looms heavily. Secrecy, fear, unease lingers in every scene. The Nazi force is heavy-handed and unapologetic. Dornan and Murphy portray emotionless Europeans very well, and its two-hour run-time flies by. It is a brilliant film with two standout set pieces; the assassination and the church shootout. The former is a preview of the suspense and intensity that the latter amplifies to great effect, accompanied by a solemn score.

A

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Fri Feb 10, 2017 12:07 pm
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Keeping it Light
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Post Re: Anthropoid
Anthropoid is a well made telling of one of the more unknown stories about WW2 to me. The highlights of the film are the assassination attempt and the church siege. Up until the assassination the film moves slowly, while it offers insight in the characters sets up the story it didn't have me fully engaged. It didn't help that I wasn't a fan of Dornan in this, not selling his accent very well and coming across a bit annoyingly as well in the first part of the film. Murphy on the other hand is fabulous, leading the film with his charm and range of emotions. The film has a few lapsing parts I was not fond of, the German soldiers in the cafe diversion and the slowmo ending for dramatic effect. But these are small gripes. The film does well in showing the life at the time while boasting some great set pieces. Also, Dornan and Murphy wear dashing outfits in this.

B+


Wed Mar 01, 2017 2:06 am
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Post Re: Anthropoid
I also wasn't fond of the coffee shop scene, but I put it down to the nature of the film. Espionage against a ruling force is bound to generate lots of near misses. But sure, it was poorly executed.

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Wed Mar 01, 2017 2:16 am
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Post Re: Anthropoid
There are some really great scenes specially the finale in the church but I found this dull and lacking enough tension before that. The love story and the implied sacrifices before those weren't handled. The thing that works is the chemistry between the two leads and espionage stuffs specially towards the second half of the movie.

B-


Mon Jan 04, 2021 5:32 am
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