Israeli cinema is completely unexplored territory for me. This picture was the first one I saw from this country. The film received a good reception at the Cannes Film Festival and was praised by Quentin Tarantino himself. It was the best movie of 2013.
Aaron Keshales and Navot Papushado creative duo of directors and screenwriters are apparently big fans of South Korean cinema with their bloody thrillers about revenge. That’s what I thought when I watched this movie. But it is worth noting the unusual style with which the authors approached the creation of their film. Successfully combining elements of various genres. First of all, this is a very cruel dramatic thriller with elements of a detective, but diluted with a good amount of black humor, sometimes bordering on absurdity. And competently mocking society as a whole, touching on topics such as paranoia before abstract evil and ethnic stereotypes. In general, it turned out a non-standard genre cocktail. I think it was more than successful.
The story follows a school teacher suspected of serial murder. Without serious evidence, he is released from the police. But the father of one of the victims decides to take justice into his own hands and obtain a confession from the alleged maniac. Which leads to a chain of horrific events.
The picture is replete with extremely violent scenes of violence. Therefore, I would not recommend a faint-hearted view. Although we must admit the ingenuity with which the directors approached the depiction of violence on the screen. Throughout the film, tense scenes border on funny and seemingly inappropriate elements for the genre. I won't go into details. Look and you'll see what I mean. In my opinion, this is a successful director's find.
The names of the actors involved in the film are hardly known to anyone. Lior Ashkenazi Playing the role of a bad policeman is remembered by the great appearance of the famous British actor Clive Owen. I caught myself doing it all the time. He plays very well, by the way. Other main characters Tsahi Grad as the father of the victim and Rotem Keinan in the image of the suspect look convincing and perfectly fit into the gloomy atmosphere of the tape.
Very Bad Guys is an unusual, inventive, violent, dramatic thriller. With a strong intrigue, an unexpected ending and unconventional black humor. A very specific movie that will not suit everyone. But if you are a fan of the genre or a fan of South Korean thrillers, then you should definitely familiarize yourself with this tape.
I will begin with the translation of the film, where Russian distributors found the words guys in the title, I do not understand after three years, and the film is very clearly given an explanation why the word wolves is present in the title.
Now closer to the film, about Israeli cinema until that moment I did not know, a little less than nothing, and probably would not have known if Tarantino did not call the film the best in a year, making this statement a very good advertisement.
Now closer to the movie. The film is a mixture of genres, thriller, detective, black comedy, as well as rape and revenge. And the mixture, I must say, turned out very good quality. The story begins with the disappearance of two girls, one of whom is quickly found without a head, and the second continues to be searched for. Moreover, suspicion falls on the local teacher, here in this place there was a certain failure in the script, as it is not clear why he became a suspect and further this is not disclosed. One of the victims, who is found in the forest without a head, is the daughter of a former military officer who decides to conduct his own investigation to find out where his daughter's head is hidden, although it would be more accurate to say knocking out a confession by kidnapping a suspect and applying sophisticated torture to him. One of the police officers accidentally gets into this lynch.
Tarantino very much praised the film, but knowing its specific taste, curiosity struggled with doubt, but here I am at the screen. It turned out that Quentin simply saw an analogue of his own work, so fans of the director will definitely be satisfied with the viewing.
In its script interest, the picture resembles Villeneuve’s “Prisoners”. There is no such drama, but competent flirting with the viewer is heated to the same extent. In the presence of a maniac who brutally kills girls, it is quite natural that there are individuals who especially want to get even with this scum. With great enthusiasm, but without definite evidence, the man was captured. Through some tools, both to him and to himself, the avengers diligently prove the truth. The main intrigue is the complete unknown, because the viewer will have to choose which side he is on – a captured maniac or a victim of a group of psychopaths? Be careful.
The dramatic bias is so insignificant that the action, now and then, violently slid into a black comedy, which may well be fun, but still sometimes became awkward. Indeed, ironically, the national question presented in the form of an Arab, who sits on his (Arab) horse. He stays out of the plot, as if observing the cruelty that is happening around, making it clear that violence is not the way out.
I will recommend the film for viewing, because I managed to fool, and this rarely happens.
I wish everyone a pleasant viewing!!
Life can be so cruel sometimes. It seems to us that the worst misfortunes happen only to other people, not to us. However, faced with this, a person is ready to avenge literally the whole world for his loss. However, revenge is not retribution, it can sometimes so cloud the mind that it makes fatal mistakes. This idea is at the heart of the Israeli thriller “Very Bad Guys.”
Synopsis A series of brutal murders of young girls brings together the fates of three men - a policeman who failed to prove the involvement of the suspect, the father of one of the victims who took justice into his own hands, and a school teacher, the main suspect in this case. Having found no other way out, the father of the victim and the policeman kidnap the teacher to literally extort information from him, not assuming what unpredictable consequences and tragic mistakes their actions will lead to.
The film, above all, is notable for its play of actors. I would like to mention the performance of Tzahi Grad, as a desperate and distraught father who does not care about the police, the law, or morality. Also very nice was the role of Lior Ashkenazi, who played a principled policeman, ready to break all the rules. Finally, the most memorable role was the role of the victim’s grandfather, played by Dovale Glickman, who turns a funny Jewish grandfather into a cruel and determined executioner.
Directors Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushad managed to create an unusual, but very stylish action thriller with elements of black comedy. The directors focused all their attention on the main characters and their behavior, and not on the investigation itself, which goes far into the background. The viewer observes how dramatically the images of the characters change when the predator is the victim, and the victim is the predator. Moreover, the directors emphasize that the created madness drives them into a corner, which leads to a fatal mistake. It is worth noting that the black humor in the film was very appropriate and did not spoil the overall impression.
The script of the film, on the one hand, seemed interesting, on the other, quite simple. There is no detective line in the film as there is no meaningful evidence in the case. We only know that the teachers suspected long before the murder of the daughter of one of the heroes, and that we ourselves do not know about his involvement. For the most part, the plot of the film consists of various tortures, accompanied by insanely cynical speeches of a desperate father. “Unexpected ending” did not seem so unexpected to me, but, to be honest, it was a little strange that the whole plot was going to this.
Result Despite its unusualness, "Very Bad Guys" is a good movie worth watching. The film catches its idea, its style, the approach and ingenuity with which the directors approached to convey on the screen the madness that was going on in the heads of the main characters. In general, I recommend the picture to view.
When you read the name “Very Bad Guys” adapted to the domestic box office (in the original “Big Bad Wolves”, that is, “Big Bad Wolves”), then for some reason a comparison with “Bad Guys” comes to mind. That same classic action movie from Michael Bay “Bad Boys”, which combined the continuation of the limited subgenre, called “blackspace”, and also “buddy-movie” with the participation of comedian Martin Lawrence and rising then No.1 star Will Smith. The prefix "Very" favors associations with parody comedies, such as "Very Scary Movie." You could expect a parody of “Bad Boys.” Ahn no! Absolutely "an no"!!! A spontaneous video from Israeli filmmakers, replete with scenes of violence, cruelty and torture – this is what “Very Bad Guys” represent, which in 2014 could receive a special award at the Cannes Film Festival “Golden Camera” for best directorial debut.
But it is hardly possible with absolute certainty to call colleagues of directors and screenwriters Aharon Keshales and Navot Papusado as newcomers - in 2010, they have already released the picture "Rebellious" (although there is an assumption that "Rebellious" began to enjoy any popularity after just their "Very bad guys"). But in any case, their names are in the overwhelming case the first acquaintance of our viewer with them, as well as with the actors of Tzachi Grad, Lior Ashkenazi and Rotem Keinan, who played the main roles in this “maniac narrative” movie. And how many times has it been said and even on the main poster for the film there is an indication that Quentin Tarantino himself stated that “Very bad guys” is the best film of the year. Of course, there are a lot of contenders for a discussion with the great and terrible, but his word is like a rental brand for the film, I imagine how grateful Tarantino is to the creators of this Israeli thriller based on the terrible violence in the frame.
No, do not think that before us there will be a male version of “Martyrs”, so vile, nauseating and really nightmares in a dream will not be terrible, although “Very bad guys” will compete in their toughness even with “Reservoir Dogs” all the same Quentin Tarantino. So, a terrible incident occurs: they find a decapitated girl who was tortured and tortured with manic addiction. Suspicion falls on a local school teacher (Rotem Kaynan), who is beaten by the police, although he later apologizes. But many do not believe in the innocence of the teacher, especially the girl’s father, who kidnaps him and with sadistic brutality begins to “knock out” the teacher’s confession. At this time, he allegedly agrees to help the local policeman, but he is clearly not so categorically sure of the fault of the teacher. In the basement of the house there is a real horror, its enclosed room heats up to the limit, the atmosphere says that soon someone will die, and the viewer can in one breath (if he is not impressionable and devoid of sadistic inclinations) wait, when the truth will be revealed and on whose conscience the terrible death of the girl will be revealed.
You can arbitrarily accuse Aharon Keshales and Navot Papusado of excessive cruelty, but the film is assigned an age limiter “16+”, so children can not show this “sight”. In fact, adults can interpret the film with its torture scenes differently, so much so that, with all the realism of what is happening, you do not believe it, soon realizing that it is all a film production, shot to shock the viewer. It should be added that Aharon Keshales and Navot Papusado did not shoot a tough B-category video, but this is a rather high-quality film in which a certain level is noticeable, which, no matter how blasphemous it may sound, is close to artistic. Plus, the same can be attributed to the play of actors who did not try to jump out of their pants, but were clearly limited to the functions of their characters, which allows fans to dig into the psychological background of the characters of the film to analyze their behavior. Of course, the father is not far away from the maniacs, and in general you can imagine a kind of allegory for how the people of Israel suffered from the Holocaust and how they were bullied, and here, they themselves are sometimes not without terrible aggression. However, this is only speculation, because you do not know what drives the father of the murdered girl: the desire to deal with the criminal, as he decided it, or the skills of a professional military in him spoke from the most terrible side.
Thanks to Quentin Tarantino, Israeli cinema has attracted attention, and even with such a controversial film. Impressive people – do not look clearly, children – in any case! But a sophisticated and courageous viewer can try what the Israelis “cooked” us there and why Tarantino so agitated for them. In addition, I will also record a very unexpected and at the same time ambiguous ending (which I personally reviewed several times to understand what happened).
Can this film be called the best film of 2013? I don't think so, but it was a revelation to me and I'm really glad I saw it. At first, “Bad” is like a sequel to Thomas Winterberg’s drama “The Hunt” about the bullying of an innocent person, but you will soon realize that this is not the case. There's intrigue in the movie. And she doesn't let you go throughout the movie. But if you want to look at the comedy (as it is written in the genre), then here you will be disappointed, since this is a “pure water” criminal thriller with elements of torture.
Now let's talk about the script, it's very simple. The story revolves around three fathers, two of whom are searching for the truth and a third who is trying to hide it. Throughout the film, you wonder why they thought he was the one who did it, because there is no evidence or evidence. On what grounds did they attach themselves to this particular man, why is there only one detective investigating this case? These questions will not be answered to you! Then the father of one of the dead girls takes over and lynches. But the theology teacher seemed to be preparing for it! Torture is used against him, from which any person would tell everything that is necessary. But not only does he not split, but he also sits all this time with a normal expression on his face as if everything is normal and he does not hurt at all! Almost the entire film will be tortured by teachers, but because of this, the film will not slow down.
The actors in the movie are good! However, Rotem Kaynan did not fully convey all the pain that his character had to endure. The rest of the actors were a discovery for me, they played at the level of Hollywood stars.
Thank you very much to composer Chaim Frank Ilfman! The music and sounds throughout the film caressed my ears. Everything's fine here! Music captures and adds intrigue.
If you liked the movies “Big jackpot” and “Prisoners” then you just have to see the creation of Keshales and Papusado “Very bad guys”.
8 out of 10
Aaron Keshales and Navot Papusado – Very Big Wolves
The ironic Tzachi Grad doesn't seem to be particularly upset about the monstrous death of his daughter. The professional military understands life in all its horror and concentrates exclusively on the issue of revenge. In cold blood and not without grace, he prepares his plan for revenge. The pedophile will be punished. But what do you do if you want to take revenge? Sensitive policeman played by Lior Ashkenazi is ready to go to great lengths to split the bastard. The means here will all be fine. But how will things go if our scumbag doesn't confess under torture? What to do if there is a management in the face of a warmly caring mother? These are the questions we will try to answer two Israeli talents – Keshales and Papusado.
Most of the film will be tortured, but the film will not lose interest. Skillfully balancing on the edge of the most operational subgenres, the creators of the tape will emerge in the direction of logic. Cool guys, or as they are called in the title of the picture - very big wolves, will be modest mama's sons, so not completely played "in war". The more they are cool, the funnier they will look. So, you think the movie is about presumption of innocence or sweet revenge? No, no. Keshales and Papusado go further and in two easy steps remind of the famous Israeli confrontation with the Arabs. The bewilderment of a resident of an Arab village at the sight of “serious men” is quite understandable – he looks at adults, but sees boyish grievances. Elegant and bold conclusion will sparkle like lightning and immediately evaporate in an unexpected ending, offering the viewer to marvel at the unexpectedly mature and verified directing.
8 out of 10
Where did the head go? Or laugh after the word shovel
As you watch, you feel sorry for pedophiles, maniacs, serial killers, rapists and even police officers. If they all suffered such a fate as teachers of theology, they would fit to be ranked as holy martyrs according to the version of the Jewish analogue of the Russian Orthodox Church or other confessional organization at the place of residence of the passion-bearer.
No, I certainly remember the Bible: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. I will continue to extrapolate the holy book to the film: nail for nail, head for head. But there is another: “No one can be found guilty except by a court verdict.” The presumption of innocence is present in many criminal codes, including the Israeli one. Of course, if first the viewer saw the bloody massacre of the poor girl, the most cruel of her details - feeding candy and sawing off the head - and it was in the performance of the first maniac (there are several in the film), he would have a different perception of what is happening. And if the disgust for other maniacs had not passed, then certainly he would not have been visited by the thought to rank the first one among the host of holy passion-bearers.
The authors of the film, apparently, set the task to compose a detective without a detective. The first maniac is guilty a priori, without proof not only to other maniacs, but also to the viewer. The final scene with the girl’s corpse on the bed also does not give an unambiguous answer: only a bicycle on the wall indicates the first maniac, because the viewer was not allowed into the theologian’s house before. However, as well as the police, guessed to come with a search only at the end. Why not earlier? No new evidence has surfaced since then. There are many maniacs who have bicycles. For example, the father of the first victim.
By the way, looking at the delightful work with a hammer and passages performed by the second maniac, the third (policeman) is convinced that he is a psycho. Then why doesn't he think the killer is bald? He killed his daughter, among others, and now knocks out a confession from the innocent, while receiving considerable pleasure (which is admitted in the course of the action). Did the filmmakers not watch the detectives? Or at least I haven’t read any books on logic. The script is the film’s weakest point. The daughter of a police maniac disappears a few hours before the call to the station. And we know that the first maniac for several days under the “cap” of the other two, not taking his eyes off him. There are many other punctures, you will find them easily. But you really shouldn't. Since this is not a detective, as follows from the above postulate about the a priori guilt of the first maniac.
Then what is the genre of creation? Comedy? Stealing over "bloody" movies? Steb should reach the grotesque so that the viewer could understand the attitude of the filmmakers to the story they told. So there is no question, “Are they all right?” Of course, sometimes the banter is so indistinguishable from the parodied genre that it is perceived as the latter. An example of this “Pulp Fiction”, which almost everyone took at face value. I remember how the audience in the audience grumbled at me when I laughed in my voice at individual moments. Tarantino was so inspired by success, although at first he was probably puzzled that the next films had already been put in full seriousness, finally erasing the line between the genre and the banter over it, introducing the black man as a mandatory, morally justified, element of the design. But if in "Inglourious Basterds" (and even in the same "Reading") the black woman gets along with morality, then in the sabja it goes against, due to the above proofs. Therefore, the movie “a la Tarantino” does not come out of it.
Maybe a comedy? But such a movie only pretends to be at the end, when the fourth maniac (father of the second) easily enters the game, as if sitting at a poker table. That's the grotesque. Plus cake and dog jokes. You know, there are few of them.
The most direct analogy remains – Korean and Thai films of the genre “ketchup”. Sawing people in half, pulling teeth with a nail-maker, hammering - all these joys the viewer relishes, knowing that the victim is a badboy. And in "Very Bad Wolves," as I mentioned at the beginning, the viewer is not sure. Moreover, it remains in slight perplexity. In addition, the authors are inconsistent in the way of ketchup - for some reason they were afraid to show the victim's body completely - without a head. The viewer will learn about her absence much later. Not only does this introduce additional confusion into the already confused plot, but it also demonstrates the weakness of the director, who has embarked on a scandalous path, but walks along it with his eyes closed. The author of the film, feeding the viewer pictures of torture worthy of the Gestapo, should be bolder.
And finally, the last question: where did the head go? Yes, it is clear that this head, like the murder of his daughter, for the second maniac is not a reason, but only a reason to do what he loves, but still interesting. The more that any detail should have a meaning that affects the plot. By the way, classic maniacs have always been proud of their exploits and gladly gave the addresses of the vaults of their trophies. It's all over the genre again. But I repeat myself.
I will say right away that the reason for watching this film for me was the review of Tarantino. He named Wolves the best film of 2013 and even updated his annual list of best films to put it first. If I hadn’t heard that, the film would have remained unknown to me, as I think so many others. And it would be very sad, because the film was very good.
Read more about the movie
The subject of “maniacs” in cinema has always been interesting to me. Take Zodiac, Silence of the Lambs, Mysterious River and so on. This film is completely different, here much attention is paid to humor, which in such a film, at first glance, is inappropriate, but, nevertheless, fits perfectly. Israeli cinema is unknown to me, I see the work of these directors and actors for the first time, and this work seemed worthy to me. The actors coped with their roles perfectly, all images look true. I want to highlight Tsakhi Grada - he made a great father, eager for revenge. The script isn’t bad either, but the first half of the film is a bit inferior to the second half, and I think that could have been avoided by some adjustments. What else? Oh, yeah. There is intrigue in the film, this cannot be distinguished. Until the end of the film, you are in a certain ignorance, and you struggle with guesses, which is always pleasant.
For a little boring first 40 minutes remove a couple of points and put the verdict:
8 out of 10
As you might expect, the film about the “very bad guys” from Israel did not leave anyone indifferent who was worthy to watch it. And of course, as is often the case with non-trivial works, the views of viewers were divided. Some are completely delighted with the black-humorous tarantinity of what is happening, others are emotionally frustrated: “How can you joke about such terrible things as killing children?” In my opinion, to varying degrees, but both are mistaken, because they did not fully understand what they are really dealing with.
The plot of the picture is very simple and, therefore, perfect. A schoolteacher is suspected of murdering little girls, but there is no evidence to charge them. The suspect remains at large. When the law is powerless, justice is taken over by the father of the last victim and a brutal policeman who is convinced of the teacher’s guilt. They kidnap the suspect, put him in the basement of a secluded house and begin their “investigation”.
“Very Bad Guys” is a large and talented film installation composed of all sorts of cliches and stamps (which have already become monumental classics of “maniac films”) and seasoned with a fair amount of irony and very spicy humor. Indeed, the Israeli "movie" allows himself things on the verge of a foul. But this is the inevitability of any story about a maniac! Plus (and this must be admitted), the film is made extremely talented, inventive, what is called “on one breath”. Everything is tailored and sewn so flawlessly precisely and smoothly that without ironic inclusions, generously scattered over the canvas of the picture, the viewer could take the film for another “serious” thriller, or horror.
The beauty of "Very Bad Guys" is that this film is a continuous, incessant, super-talented provocation. Here, every character, deed, dialogue, every mise-en-scene and every sound (up to Buddy Holly’s “Everyday”) are strictly calibrated, calculated and perfectly work on the overall concept of the film – surprise, amaze, outrage, provoke. At any cost, no matter what. It seems that for Keshales and Papusado, cinema is only cinema. It's just a game. And it does not matter to them what to “play” – murder, violence, love or fairy tale – it is important that it is fun and provocative! And in this sense, the creators of "Very Bad Guys" are specific brothers in mind of Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. Of course, the creation of Israeli movie prodigies is not as rugged as the films of Rodriguez, and not as imposing as the late Tarantino, but the manners are the same! The worldview is unison, so to speak...
Therefore, my dear cinematographers, “do not look down, please” and do not try to look for deep meanings where they initially do not exist. And don't compare, for God's sake, this sparkling fireworks provocation to the dull-depressive "Martyrs." And in general, if you can not limit yourself in ostentatious moralizing, it is better not to watch this movie at all.
P.S. A little paraphrasing the slogan of the film, I would voice it as follows: “Men are evil creatures”. This is closer to the truth.
A bright and capacious introduction immediately informs the viewer that there will be something terrible and sinister, but later there is a slight disappointment, since a tough thriller did not work, and crime, except for the fact of the crime committed, you will not see here. But I was surprised by the humor. It is very small, it is peculiar, but understandable and funny. And at least somehow explains the rather strange behavior of Glavheroes, namely, the comedy component. So a kind of aching cognitive dissonance on the surface eventually recedes under the onslaught of the funny, and you no longer expect to see anything vitally logical, and these expectations are just met.
The depth, the morality, or anything that makes us reconsider or overestimate, or at least think, is simply not there. Not an easy, but still entertaining movie, which left me with pleasant impressions that usually arise after watching a black comedy. A person is tortured, but you do not sympathize with him or worry about his fate, but perceive the action as a theater of the absurd. At the end of the viewing, I began to get annoyed, despite the colorful bloody scenes, sharply contrasting with the expression of the faces of the participants in the play, as the feeling of “now begins” disappeared and what we call stagnation merged into what is happening, but, despite this, the authors of the picture still managed to surprise a little.
This is one of those cases where you accidentally stumble upon something amazing. Before watching Very Bad Guys, I had no idea about Israeli cinema. Well, the first acquaintance was truly amazing.
Opening itself, which includes children playing hide-and-seek to disturbing music, during which one of the guys disappears in an unknown direction, gets to goosebumps. But events on this only begin to unwind, dipping the viewer into the vicious world of crime. Here, the police are insignificantly hesitant to knock out a confession from an intelligent teacher on evidence of third-rate significance, the participants of the action get real pleasure, and the fate of the poor teacher, at the same time, absolutely nobody cares. Further, the problems of those involved in the murder (namely, the teacher, the dirty cop and the father of the deceased schoolgirl) are only beginning to grow, rolling from a very large mountain.
Despite the seriousness of the situation and the plot as a whole, the picture should be considered primarily as a black comedy. Take a look for yourself: a man suspected of murder is taken prisoner by the grief-stricken and slightly deranged father of the unfortunate girl and an unclean servant of the law, the latter soon joins the ranks of the bound and immobilized, and another maniac joins one maniac... In general, the case when you just need to see.
Big Bad Wolves may not be the best movie of 2013, but it is quite possible to stake a place in your memory. One of the reasons is the end of the story, revealing the true appearance of the maniac.
9 out of 10
The film Big Bad Wolves Israeli production - an excellent representative of Tarantino's favorite genre of horror, by the way, was, conscientiously and fairly recognized by the master of the grandaus "best film of 2013" and even took the honorable 15th place in the TOP 20 "best films" he watched in his lifetime, which by default should be above any praise for the directors themselves.
By the way, from the very beginning, it is worth paying tribute to the brilliant director of the film and directly to the Israeli directorial tandem - Keshales & Popushado.
The very “brilliant directing”, in this case my vision includes the appropriate level: camera work, a qualitatively mounted sound and video sequence, which from the very beginning give the appropriate atmosphericity and chamber nature to the film.
The operator was sometimes accused of “staffing”, but I did not notice such blunders. And sound and editing cause only genuine enjoyment of each frame.
Careful, detailed, and most importantly logical development of the script only add 99-level coolness to the film.
Of course, the talented play and the absolute dedication of actors unknown to anyone; the maximum drawing of each character and again, the reference to a carefully worked out script are kept in suspense until the very final scene, in an already to the limit bent environment.
After reading the preliminary synopsis, by the way, with a synopsis on EX. UA is no less fortunate, because not revealing all the maps at once, the latter only confuses and gives a relevant bias directly to viewing. And, despite some worn-out backbone of history, at the end the film is stunning with an unexpected culmination, not devoid of philosophical overtones.
The acting to the limit is realistic and colorful. Not only does no one cause irritation or hostility, everyone looks as harmonious and appropriate as possible.
The film is completely complete in terms of character content.
And the stubbornness and, it seemed, the absolute baselessness of the accusations - a bit of a stupid ex-cop, suspended for interrogation with bias, the most convincingly harmless children's school teacher.
The psychopathic maniacality of Gidi (Tzahi Grada) is a military veteran - the father of a murdered girl, with all his arsenal of torture prepared for, again, at first glance, an innocent person.
During all this psychodrama and playing on human emotions, extremely harsh, even identically aestheticized scenes of violence cause a blatant sense of protest and a natural question: “And which of these three is the most manic, and who is even an iota human?” A question that will never be answered. Because the nuances of the moral attitude to what is happening, the authors leave for the viewer.
All of the above refers to the undoubted plus of the film, but its main trump card is still undoubtedly masterfully written dialogues. Subtle irony, seasoned with black humor, makes this film, the flagship and hallmark of Israeli cinema and just the horror genre of black comedies.
If in the paintings of Guy Ritchie and Tarantino - recognized masters of content-ironic dialogues, there are certainly pearls of dialogue battles, but in order to pull the latter out of the general context, you need to focus on each replica throughout the entire timekeeping. Then in "Very Bad Guys" saturation of dialogue text beats the key wit, subtlety and intellectual aesthetic throughout the film. Harmoniously blending into the dynamism of the unfolding of the plot and diluting the general background of cruelty with refined sarcasm.
The picture is not without situational comic provisions. How can the song "Buddy Holly - Everyday" not cause a warm smile in the episode with the preparation of a cake by the ruthless adherent of Themis - Gidea? I'm not talking about Guidi's family full of surprises. Marginal father - absolutely calmly reacting to the atrocities of his son. Which, in the process, turns out to be even more merciless in its level of cruelty and uncompromising in its retaliation. Or a curious tandem of a cop and a murdered father. The ironic coolness of the former and the epic intransigence of the latter.
The opening of 2013 Toronto After Dark Film Festival, was marked by nominations and awards at Tribeca, Night Visions, and directly - After Dark, is not unreasonable and quite deserved, because Big Bad Wolves is rightfully named the best film of 2013 and the flagship of the Grandhouse of Israeli cinema.
10 out of 10
This is a movie that I don’t think is worth talking about in general. You should watch it, not read the details about it (or not watch it if you don’t like the genre). So let me go through the picture only thesis, light strokes.
I want to say right away that the voiceover of the film and the musical accompaniment are performed at the highest level. Almost half of the required atmosphere was created by just one sound.
The acting game is certainly talented. Each character turned out convincingly, no curves, everything is strictly the way people would behave in ordinary life.
Characteristically, all the main characters of the film are divorced men, each of whom has a young daughter. The mother of one of them, breaking into the air of the plot only from the phone, conveys to the viewer the belief that the way of life of a normal person is not at all such that the collapse of the family is evil. But the heroes of the film about modern Israelis are still such - divorced, raising their children at a distance. Unfortunately, not everything is smooth in family affairs, even among people with ancient traditions and culture. Last days, whatever you say! . .
The episodes of communicating with mom and dad were especially amusing, as strange as it may sound for such a heavy film. They seem to be specially inserted for balance, for some balancing of the tension that was escalated in the course of the plot with each new minute. In these episodes, the color of the national peculiarities of relations in Jewish families appeared very juicy. I think the Jews who made the film deliberately and thoughtfully inserted them to amuse themselves with this wonderful humor.
They did not hesitate to touch upon the topic of interethnic communication with neighboring Arabs, which is painful for Israelis. Served well, with great dignity for both sides, I really enjoyed it.
The ending evoked ambivalent feelings. On the one hand, it's not clear how a policeman could say "all clear" when there is clear and irrefutable evidence in the form of a child. You do not know what to think: whether the police did not work at all, or whether this is not at all what I thought. But there is nothing else to think about, so the work of the police aroused great suspicion – how could you not notice the child on the bed?
On the other hand, the ending seems to suggest that Jews in their stubbornness always stand on the right path (this is not in the sense of the film, but in general, in a global sense). Therefore, whatever they do to achieve a goal is certainly justified. Some, and most likely Jews, will say that I am exaggerating, but it is impossible not to notice this message. Of course, the film is not about politics, and I understand that you should not confuse warm with soft. But unwittingly, certain associations arose.
In general, despite the need to reject any really inappropriate association with Israeli politics, Jews are shown to have genuine nerves of iron, courageous and stubborn to the point of fanaticism. It is impossible not to admire this national trait. They can achieve their goals!
Conclusion. Very tough movie. In a sense, "hardness" as it is.
On the other hand, the accompanying scenes with the national characteristics of the main characters to a very large extent make the picture painted not only in brown shades of rusty tin, but also quite himself in very dark tones of real black humor. Against the background of cynically ruthless cruelty, such humor looks not just black, but frighteningly black!
Tarantino's assessment is absolutely clear, because the film is quite in his style. I think even he was fiddling on the stool when he looked...
I went quite a roundabout route to this film. To begin with, I had the opportunity to see this film in September, as part of the St. Petersburg International Film Festival, but having already bought a ticket, at the crucial moment, I went to another Israeli film included in the competition program. But even then the film interested me, and so I took note of it. In early February, taking stock of 2013 and brushing my tails for the films I have to watch, I stumbled upon it again, but a cursory search failed to bear fruit because everything was seized by the copyright holder. That’s when I found out that the film will still be in limited release, and today I finally watched it.
Buying a ticket for the next day, I chose any place in the tiny hall, but already at the film the hall was filled with couples, it is unclear how they ended up in the auditorium. As I understand it, the underestimation on film search is due precisely to the fact that this movie is watched by the wrong viewer.
Let’s start, as befits the name, which the American translators from Who’s Afraid of the Evil Wolf moved to Big Bad Wolves, and the Russian localizers, picking up the flag, did not shake up, and turned the name into “Very Bad Guys”, apparently referring to the criminal comedy “Bad Guys”. I'm afraid to imagine how much further this terrible chain of translations can lead, if it does not stop at us. The only excuse for the translation is that perhaps the distributors feared that the film would be confused with the 2006 New Zealand short film. Well, it should be noted that this film, which too blatantly and brazenly copies the first scene from “Mad Dogs”, a little perversely complements “Very bad guys” (I will use this title to avoid confusion), summing up the original morality of the story with the phrase: “This tale about the importance of sex education”. You can't argue with that.
Well, I will dare to answer the main question that worries the inquisitive minds of many users. Why did Tarantino call it the best movie of 2013? The answer is quite obvious, just go to IMDB and see the list of references in this film. The directors themselves admitted that they were inspired to create this film after watching the Asian I Saw the Devil. Add to this the explicit references to Oldboy (the hammer scene) and Memories of Murder (the scene in the woods). Given that the first Quentin called the absolute masterpiece, and the second takes the 15th place in Tarantino’s personal twenty, it becomes obvious why he appreciated this film so highly. Only here the inexperienced viewer is unlikely to be able to see it without asking for help from Google. Therefore, it is quite difficult to call Tarantino’s opinion unbiased. And considering that this film is very similar to “Mad Dogs”, Quentin’s first work, genre, chamberility, cruelty, a great soundtrack, yes, damn it, almost everyone, it is difficult to imagine what warm feelings Tarantino experienced when watching this film, paternal, in any sense. Even I, who shuddered after using Buddy Holly's "Everyday" in the film and was ready for absolutely anything, would not be surprised if one of the guests who glanced at the light in the basement was Mr. Blondine, who, having turned on his favorite radio show "Ky-Billy: Super Melodies of the Seventies", would cut off a poor teacher, for example, a lip, and retire from the film on urgent business. Supporters of conspiracy theories can stretch their muscles and easily tie all the ends on the ill-fated Tarantino, turning him into a secretive puppeteer, secretly, through the Rabinovich Foundation, which sponsored this film.
As soon as you read the plot, immediately before your eyes pop up (well, not in a literal sense) the recent “Prisoners” with Hugh Jackmann and Jake Gyllenhaal. These are twin films, however, it is against the background of “Prisoners”, you understand what they could have become, but did not become and how good “Boys” are. After re-reading my own records about Prisoners, who give a very restrained optimism, with a note of skepticism about some scripted moves, I realized that if I watched them after the guys, I would tear them to dust, so chewed up is the finale. The initial situation, in which the father takes justice into his own hands and begins to torture the probable suspect, already reeks of some surrealism, it does not turn into some kind of moralizing movie with a predetermined social happy ending. As soon as you remember the American version, you understand how the author’s film is better than another studio blockbuster, with predetermined goals and objectives, even if not standard. In the review of Captives, I mentioned that this is the American version of the Scandinavian detective. Well, oddly enough, but black comedies, albeit to a lesser extent, also find a good foothold in the face of northern cinema. A close degree of cruelty, a slightly more twisted plot, but the same situational sense of humor, when it is not a sin to laugh enough at a severed or broken finger, as, for example, in “Jackpot” by Yu Nyosba, allows you to akin, even very approximately, “Very bad guys” with these films.
Humor generally occupies the lion’s share of the film, brightens up what is happening. Undoubtedly, some gags are already quite worn out, such as the constant interruption of the hero, some are frankly stupid, but the black sense of humor does not change the authors. And if not everyone’s mind pops up a scene from “Lie down in Bruges” during the episode on the bench, I prefer to write it off on my sick imagination, making me laugh, then almost all the scenes with Father Gidi will most likely cheer you up. At some points, I wanted to insert replicas from famous movies. Something like the famous quote of another Blonde: “People are divided into two classes – those who have a revolver loaded and those who dig.” You dig. This is black humor at its best. Directors do not revel in violence, using it in strictly dosed quantities. The authors skillfully play on racial stereotypes, finding their worthy use. And indeed, having made a film on this plot in any other country, you will find that the motivation of the characters is flimsy, so look and fall apart, and all the situational humor has gone somewhere. At the end of the day, it’s a very Jewish movie, despite the fact that there’s only been one such movie. However, not by bread alone, Keshales and Papusado send the lowest bow towards the Arab-Israeli conflict, with a couple of simple strokes. They are also honored that they did not mention World War II, mentioning, among other things, chaos theory, which only adds to their honor. Except that at first it was somewhat embarrassing that the operator constantly used the method of hitting objects, but then the operator’s work leveled off.
Well, this film has a certain charm, awakens pleasant associations, has excellent black humor, delights the ear with an interesting sound range, but, in any case, it is not designed for a wide audience, but rather for several geeks, whom it will not disappoint.
Maniacs are not afraid of guns. Maniacs are afraid of maniacs. (c)
There are a number of countries in which cinema is not that not developed, just the films of these countries go unnoticed by most viewers of the planet. However, from time to time, such strange people make their main film, which is a kind of association with the country. For example, the main film for Brazil is "City of God", for Iran - "Divorce of Nader and Samin", for Estonia - "Class", etc. But what do we know about the cinema of Israel and on what topics can the representatives of this country make films? It comes to mind, only a wonderful cartoon in narrow circles "Waltz with Bashir". However, on February 13 in Russia, the film “Very Bad Guys” is released in an extremely limited release. Not only is February 13 the premiere date for many anticipated films, but it simply doesn’t come out in many cities. But folk translators do not sleep, so we have the opportunity to watch one of the great thrillers in general, and from Israel in particular. If Tarantino himself drew attention to it, then the film deserves our attention.
A very good start, where in Slow-Motion to beautiful dramatic music, the children play yarn, after which one of the children disappears. Immediately we are shown a suspect, whom valiant police officers are trying to persuade by rude physical influence to confess. It is not clear where this suspect came from, what evidence against him and in general who he is, and in the process of investigation this question remains unanswered, but the conviction of the police has no limits. According to the plot, the film is closest to "Prisoners", since the lion's share of the film is devoted to "interrogation" of the main suspect, and with the help of various tools to prove his guilt. But to say that the film is one long torture over the unfortunate teacher, it would be wrong, because the script constantly pleases with various unexpected turns, during which new people are connected to the “interrogation”.
What is most surprising is the lack of specificity. Still, the film from Israel, but if you change the names of the main characters, and determine the country-author will be almost impossible. The film is very close to the typical American detective thriller, this can be seen both in the presentation of the plot and in the characters of the film. Among the main characters, there are no positive characters, and they differ only in the degree of humanity to their victim. Interestingly, in the film there was a place for humor, and quite black humor. I've never seen anyone talk about breaking fingers with such a neutral look. The actors are great, although it is useless to call them by their names, so it is worth highlighting the performer of the role of a teacher who endures torture with such a face that he is believed, and the Israeli Clive Owen. Selecting someone specific is quite difficult. And although the rental version of the title “Very Bad Guys” unwittingly gives off associations with some American comedy, it is better than the Israeli “Big Bad Wolves”.
In fact, the film did not make any revolution in the genre, but for Israel it is an undoubted breakthrough in the country's cinema. Not every, say, American detective thriller boasts an interesting script and atmosphere, but this film could. Magnificent injection of the right atmosphere in certain moments makes the film not only interesting and memorable, but also makes you empathize with the characters, which is the most important thing in any film. It remains only to wish the cinema of Israel in the future to please the viewer with good films, and to develop themselves in all available genres.