The Act of Killing (Producers: Werner Herzog & Errol Morris)

[ackbar]

comes out in north america on july 18th. looks like a truly disturbing / powerful / great documentary

The Act of Killing (Theatrical cut)
Directed By: Joshua Oppenheimer
(Denmark, Indonesia, 2012, 115 mins)
Probably the most radical and powerful film you will experience this year, The Act of Killing is a searing expose of political amnesia and impunity in Indonesia, where the gangsters and thugs behind the murders of millions are celebrated as champions of free enterprise. It is also a surreal, provocative exploration of the psyches of these men - killers who proudly re-enact their atrocities for the camera, willing collaborators in their own cinematic bonfire of the vanities.

[ReginaldWonder]

Errol Morris is the documentary king. Anything that guy does is worth checking out, even if he's just involved in this in a producing capacity. Also, Herzog is a film titan that deserves to have olive branches and small animal sacrifices flung at his feet 24/7.

Haven't checked this particular film out yet, but I've only heard good things about it so far. I have it downloaded, so if I get around to it in the next couple days I'll post my thoughts on it. Thanks for the reminder though.

[ReginaldWonder]

Also, it should be noted that Errol Morris is the person who Werner Herzog lost a bet to and then boiled and ate a shoe because of it.

Basically, he bet Morris that he wouldn't be able to complete his first documentary film "Gates of Heaven" about pet cemeteries in Northern California. After Morris complete and premiered the film, Herzog got Alice Waters to help cook and boil a shoe and the whole thing got filmed in Berkeley.



Not exactly hilarious or a very good film. But it's kind of an interesting sidenote/trivia fact.

[Blockhead]

Saw this last night. I can say , with all certainty, I cannot recall a time leaving a movie theater so fucked up by a movie. It's seriously nuts. I recommend it to anyone who likes to feel like absolute shit after seeing movies. I mean that in a good way.

[Versive]

So what you're saying is it's an ideal first-date movie. Duly noted.

[LilLeftBrain]

director dude was on ron & fez about two weeks back, sounds like a hell of a thing

[Blockhead]

So what you're saying is it's an ideal first-date movie. Duly noted.

That was actually the first thing I said when i left the theater....following about 10 minutes of total silence and shock.

[ReginaldWonder]

Best documentary I've seen in a while. Super fucked-up and depressing, but really engaging and bizarrely interesting to watch unfold.

Definitely has a ton of WTF moments.

Mainly when that one paramilitary member is talking openly about the joys of raping 14 year olds and also when Anwar Congo wakes his grand-kids up to watch him being "tortured" on screen.

Didn't know almost anything about Indonesian politics/gangsters/etc going into this, so it was definitely an eye-opening experience. Not that anything said or talked about particularly surprised me, but the fact that all these murders, the culture of political extortion, and all the public cover-ups were so openly talked and bragged about at every level of Indonesian society was really crazy to catch on camera.

[Andvil]

definitely one of the best documentaries I've ever seen

it's been online for a little over 2 months btw for anyone interested in watching

[jamrage]

Saw this today, and it wasn't what I was expecting at all. This shit is fucking bizarre, and definitely has some chilling moments. It's certainly an original movie experience, but it's way too long and bloated at two and a half hours. Some of the "reenactments" take far too long to develop, and I found myself having to take breaks because it just wasn't grabbing me.

No ex-communists or family members could be found or interviewed about this time period? That would have really dialed up my interest. This is a really visually stunning documentary, but it's not enough to carry it through the rough patches. The final scene is probably the most powerful, which is why the film leaves people troubled, but the truth is that the movie really needed more of these kind of moments than it produced.

Kudos to the director for making this movie though, it opened my eyes to a part of the world that I really had little to no knowledge about.

6.5 outta 10

[Andvil]

the version I saw was just under 2 hours

[jamrage]

Yeah, apparently I watched the director's cut.

[Blockhead]

I saw it in the theater (no clue if it was the long or short version) but I was pretty wrapped up in it from the jump. It never really lagged for me. Everything they showed felt like it had a purpose.

[Brougham33]

Saw it in a theater, thought it was incredible, hilarious, and mostly horrific.