MovieChat Forums > The Half Life of Timofey Berezin (2007) Discussion > Odd film (SPOILERS)

Odd film (SPOILERS)

posted 16 years ago by groggo
6 replies | jump to latest

It takes a while to adjust your ears to an international cast (English, Australian, Guatemelan, Danish) all speaking English with terrible (and inconsistent) Russian accents. Meanwhile, the film takes place entirely in Russia accompanied by signs in the Russian language. This formula really strains credulity.

Another problem is the sudden shift between effective, irreverent comedy and brutal violence. There are sympathetic characters in this film and we identify with them, yet they're suddenly dispatched in scenes that don't make much sense (why weren't they killed much earlier: why are they so SUDDENLY and SAVAGELY bumped off?) The contrast between very funny send-ups of the criminal mind to nasty violence is very jarring indeed.

This is an interesting film that wants to underscore our apathy about the horrors of plutonium (we seem to have grown indifferent to its monstrous capacity to destroy the world). Unfortunately, the film doesn't have a constant focus, and comes off ultimately as confused and muddled. And that ending is straight out of a feel-good Disney flick.

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] g_string2010 16 years ago

I whole heartedly disagree. I won't go into my argument now but how can you call the ending feel good and Disney? When the two main protagonists are laying dead and abandoned on the ground leaving their son's behind (whom they would do anything for).
I don't quite remember Snow White being so melodromatic. The ending is more like a Shakespearian tradgedy than anything.

[–] raf-33 15 years ago

To the OP, this is a British film, Brit flicks are renowned for being unpredictable. British films don't follow a formula as like so many US movies, i.e., a movie is a comedy and thus will have no nudity, no gore and only gags.

If you catch more British movies you will become accustomed to multiple-genre films. Granted, they do not always work but sometimes they are genius (the serious-funny-serious In Bruges being a prime example). Sometimes during a Brit horror movie you will get an unnecesary and sometimes out-of-character quip by one of the cast that just seems out of place, or a family comedy will have a scene of just wanton violence in it for what seems like no reason.

It's just a different style of film, I'm British and I don't always get my head around why some movies have such jarring offshoots in them, but I do enjoy the unpredictability and the lack of always having a love dovey cutesy hollywood ending.

If I could give one tip for watching a Brit Flick it would be 'do not always expect a happy ending or you may be disappointed'.

With your feet in the air and your head on the ground, try this sig with spinach!

[–] The_Great_Ahmed_Kahn 15 years ago

To the OP, this is a British film, Brit flicks are renowned for being unpredictable. British films don't follow a formula as like so many US movies, i.e., a movie is a comedy and thus will have no nudity, no gore and only gags.
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I would say that the 'british films vs american films' argument is very naive....it's more formula films vs the rest of the world.

Nuclear accident films are always tragedies...Silkwood makes this flick seem like a feel good family film. Threads is considered one of the most depressing films of all time.

If you want to get technical, the mom and kid going to costa rica is a happy ending of sorts.

[–] pedersen-chris 12 years ago

I've been surrounded by Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians and Kazakhs for years now and sure, the accents weren't great, they hardly detracted from the narrative. I mean, you make an agreement at the beginning with the film makers. For the price of not having to read subtitles the entire film you ignore the fact that everyone in Russia speaks English to one another. I think you're being hypercritical and looking for things to complain about.

As for the contrast between the light and dark scenes, I felt it they complemented one another, but maybe this is purely a matter of personal taste. I think it's also explained very clearly why they were killed. Shiv is killed because his time has run out to pay back Tusk and Timofey was killed for ignoring Vlads, a petty criminal who was looking to steal anything from windshield wipers to butterflies, request for the parcel he was carrying.

It's also an interesting Disney ending where everyones dad gets murdered. So, maybe you just didn't enjoy the film. That's fine, but your reasoning is ridiculous.

[–] LaZedBoy 11 years ago

I loved this film. One layer removed from the central stories about family and PU239 is the endemic and overarching corruption in Russia, and as a result how sh!tt!ly normal people treat each other as part of their everyday behaviour. Spot on. The shredding of the fabric of society. Something the rest of us should want to avoid and not strive for.

"Spock! Form an away team! You, me, Bones, Scotty and umm... Ensign Smith!"