andreashusa
If this film was shot in several takes it wouldn't be the same. The fact that it has been made in one take makes the film so extraordinary and unique. It makes the audience feel more familiar with the surroundings and the whole film feels more real and intense. If the film was made in several takes and not in real-time, it would be more like an ordinary German crime film. The cinematography is the most central and unique element in this production.
emdeewee
Victoria is a movie about the fact that is was shot in one take. This movie is about itself.That is what this movie is about. That is the subject matter. It is not a movie about a Spanish girl living in Berlin, about being estranged in modern modern city life, it is not about Berlin, not about making choices, it is not about life, death, conscience, it is about nothing, nothing other than; the fact that is was shot in one take.It gets five stars in major newspapers, for, as is the case with most films these days; it blows a screen of action and tension, the smoke being a decoy for substance.I remember this space movie with Sandra Bullock, Gravity; that was also supposedly a brilliant movie, since it was made with special techniques. But it was empty all the way through, and people fall for this stuff. This movie is the same thing.Characters are flat as can be, not well written, and the so called slow scenes on poetic music are not telling anything at all. For example: at a certain point our characters are in an elevator and all the dialogue, up to this point very dominant, is turned down to silence; we just see them talking and laughing, as nice music comes up and images seem to slow down. It is supposed to be telling of something, or to be dramatic. What is this telling us? Nothing. That is because there is no drama what so ever, that is accentuated here. It is simply hollow aesthetics.It would be so cool if this was a great movie. Because then the makers would have had their revenge over mainstream cinema, which they were trying to rebel against. A beautiful goal, full of heart and energy - but if the result is a flat movie, obsessed with form and without any substance what so ever, like in Gravity, then what do you have to show for? Where is this an argument for? You only prove yourself wrong, is what you do, and as we say in Holland; you throw in you own windows.I guess the process was exhilarating, which is a good reason to make anything of course.But if you want to watch a movie that is not about itself, and will be dear to you for years to come, because you love the characters, their struggle, their mannerisms, their pain and courage, then don't bother with this.If you want some kind of thriller, then go for it.
tony-67700
I saw someone had described it as a masterpiece and I wouldn't disagree. I watched it with subtitles but it isn't an issue as it would work in silence in terms of understanding the story line. It begins by making you fear the worst could happen to the young girl who meets a seemingly motley group of men late at night. However it takes a different course and moves at an incredible pace It is shot in a way so that it appears to be one continuous shot from start to finish. This in itself is quite a feat. The unpredictability of the film and the tangents it shoots off at keep you on the edge of your seat. The characterizations are strong and you care what happens to them which also matters so much in any film. The story line has been covered by others I am sure and its probably best not to know too much about that aspect or you could undermine the tension created. If only there were more films of this caliber rather than Hollywood trash like La La Land, which is badly made, crafted and predictable- all characteristics not shared by this film!
awillawill
This film had the potential to be one of the great ones if only someone had displayed the nous and courage to slash about 20 minutes from the first half.As I watched the film at home I kept shouting. "Okay, guys, we've got the message, now move along to the next step in the story." But my shouts were in total vain and there came several points in the first half where I came within a whisker of giving up on it and finding something else more enjoyable to watch. It wasn't until we got to the first cafe scene that the story began to take off -- as take of it most certainly did.Perhaps the problem for the director and the editors lay in the fact that much of it was a single, protracted shot. But they should have seen the need to delete some of the more repetitive sections.
