Tuesday rolls around and off we trot to the Red Panda. Turns out their early evening special is an "all you can eat" deal served from a special menu rather than a buffet. Sounded like a good deal so we tucked in to some delicious food. Sadly the restaurant was busy and service slow so we had to leave early to book in for the film. This was a bad idea: should have bought tickets on the way in. They were sold out for the early showing. We had to book for the later one and hang around drinking beer in the sports bar downstairs, playing pool and reading posters on the wall. Its not the best bar in the world. Eventually we were able to head up for the film.
Despite our preparations we were still late and the cinema was already pretty full. We were forced down to first few rows at the front, so close to the screen it wasn't possible to see the whole thing without moving your head. Turned out to be much better than it seemed though. Not one for retelling the story - you can get that anywhere - instead a few comments on what made this film stand out.
Our seating: there is a moment near the start of the film as the whole premise of the story-line is being built up and members of the gang recruited; sitting in a Parisienne street cafe and reality starts to be manipulated. On screen, buildings and masonry reforms itself and reality gets bent out of shape. Sitting so close to this was an awesome experience - a visual treat, because we could not see the whole screen at once, we had to keep looking round catching glimpses out of the corner of an eye
Audience Participation: viewing the action as we did made the experience seem even realer as if we were experiencing it directly. This sense of participation was even stronger as the story progressed. The director held nothing back demanding the viewer to keep up with the story. This was by no means a passive film; the complexity of the plot and the whys and wherefores of what was happening on screen - frequently discontinuous - either had to be accepted at face value to be rationalised later or understood in the complexity of the narrative(s). I am sure the pace of the story disguised one or two weaknesses in the plot but being forced to run with the story as it raced along, without question helped and probably encouraged a believability in what a pretty outrageous idea. This felt so like a true story for my own imagination; and there's a conundrum for you. Wicked!
Awesome Action: although there is plenty of CGI effects, they tend to be offered exactly as what they are: fantastic gimcracks showing off what can be done. And the are impressive. But what really brought the film alive were several of the action sequences - perhaps assisted by CGI to heighten the sensation. Reportedly the best of them all had no assist, it was the real deal - a fight sequence in the corridor of an hotel but the hallway was spinning and tumbling as the protagonists fought with each other.
Best film I have seen in a long time.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
