Tag: Noomi Rapace

Lamb Review

In cartoons and comedies, we’ve grown accustomed to watching animals with human qualities and it doesn’t phase us one bit. Same goes for horror movies and it’s usually played for laughs or with cartoonish violence. That is surely not the vibe of Valdamir Johannson’s fable Lamb, which treats its baby sheep and real baby hybrid with total tonal sincerity. It’s not the first movie to do it (though not with that combo). It’s jarring nonetheless.

Maria (Noomi Rapace) and Ingvar (Hilmir Snaer Guonason) are remote farmers who tend to their flock amidst the scenic mountains of Iceland. Their rather mundane days are given a jolt when the couple deliver a creature with anthropoid qualities.

The blended family scenario provides immediate joy to the parents who suffered a previous tragedy in their conception attempts. A disconcerting aspect of the screenplay is how normally their situation is treated. That’s until Ingvar’s deadbeat brother Pétur (Bjorn Hlynur Haraldsson) drops in and his reaction mirrors the WTFery of the viewer.

While Maria and Ingvar stubbornly adhere to maintaining the new routine, Ada (and the dog) sense an outside presence lurking. Mom and Dad aren’t questioning how this mythical being came to be. The animal instincts of others are on alert.

A24 specializes in artsy horror flicks though I struggle to say Lamb is of that genre. It’s not scary. Eerie, including its picturesque though foreboding atmosphere, is a better word for it. This is prime example of either buying the concept or wanting to run for the hills. For a while, I was intrigued by its bizarre nature. Rapace’s committed performance (I’m tempted to say she really has the chops) helps.

When some of the mysteries are clarified in the third act, it felt a bit sudden and anticlimactic. The presentation is certainly unique but the overriding theme of grief is recognizable. That’s not to say there aren’t genuine surprises that occur. The shock value seems a little diluted after watching this sweater clad wooly oddity assisting with breakfast.

**1/2 (out of four)

Oscar Watch: The Girl in the Spider’s Web

On November 9, The Girl in the Spider’s Web drops in theaters stateside. It had its premiere at the Rome Film Festival and reviews are out. The film is a continuation of adaptations of the bestselling Swedish crime novels originated by Stieg Larsson (this particular book was penned by David Lagercrantz). If it seems odd to have an Oscar Watch post up for the thriller, don’t forget that 2011’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo nabbed five nominations: Best Actress (Rooney Mara), both Sound races, Cinematography, and Editing (which it won).

This version finds Claire Foy taking over the lead role of Lisbeth as she follows in the footsteps of Mara and Noomi Rapace before that. Don’t Breathe director Fede Alvarez takes over top duties after David Fincher made Dragon. Costars include Sverrir Gudnason, Sylvia Hoeks, LaKeith Stanfield, Stephen Merchant, and Vicky Krieps.

Early reaction is quite mixed and Web appears highly unlikely to match the many kudos that went to Fincher’s film. Critics are pointing out Foy as a highlight, but I wouldn’t look her to be a factor at all in Best Actress. Lucky for her, she is a definite factor in Supporting Actress with the already released First Man.

Bottom line: while Tattoo garnered Academy attention, don’t look for voters to stamp their approval here. My Oscar Watch posts will continue…

Passion Movie Review

Brian De Palma dips into his old bag of tricks once again with Passion, resurrecting his exercises in stylistic silliness. From Dressed to Kill to Body Double to Femme Fatale, it’s the director’s return to what could be described as Hitchschlockian. His affinity for the Master of Suspense has been evident for decades. Unlike Hitchcock, his homages come with a hard R rating and an increased level of the ridiculous. De Palma is winking hard here with throwbacks to past uses of split screen, which is used memorably in a ballet sequence mixed with blood. If only the whole thing were more consistently enjoyable.

The character of Christine (Rachel McAdams) is one that’s basically required to smoke cigarettes and she does. She’s an ad exec with limitless ambition and a do whatever it takes attitude. Her assistant Isabelle (Noomi Rapace) appears more quiet and reserved, but it turns out she’s ruthless as well. She’s having an affair with Christine’s beau (Paul Anderson) and that dynamic creates all kinds of melodrama as Christine wants her in that way as well. It all comes with a heaping of the sleaze De Palma is known for gleefully wallowing in. Karoline Herfurth plays Isabelle’s subordinate who also has a massive crush on her. Essentially, everyone has a thing for Isabelle. Rapace is stuck with the more subdued role while McAdams gets to have a good time with her over the top part.

Dressed to Kill is easily the filmmaker’s finest work in this genre. Nothing has really come close since, but all follow-ups certainly have their flashes of depraved fun. That applies to Passion, but it takes too long to get there. For De Palma aficionados, the nostalgic payoffs don’t really begin until that screen splits and twists start to follow. Unfortunately that’s about an hour into the proceedings. By then, even De Palma’s most ardent fans burning for Passion might have subsided a bit.

**1/2 (out of four)