[Airboss]

 Surveillance (Unter Kontrolle - German Title) - Synopsis: Jennifer Lynch , director of BOXING HELENA and daughter of David Lynch , helms this crime/horror thriller.


Though the Santa Fe desert appears calm, it's the site of a number of gruesome murders. A trio of local police officers has found several witnesses, but soon the investigation belongs to the FBI. In this film starring Julia Ormond and Bill Pullman , nothing is as simple as it might seem.


This is my kind of movie (well any movie by David or Jennifer Lynch is for that matter) for most, I believe it will be one of those that you either love it or hate it (BTW, Julia Ormond really looks hot in this). Reviews have been mixed although for me it was a real treat. Don't want to say too much and give away anything, best just to watch it in the blind.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) I did see the twist coming a little early but that didn't spoil anything.



If you have more patience than I then you can wait until 26 June 2009 when "Surveillance" will be in limited released in the US and then another couple of months for the DVD.


Or if like me, a huge Lynch fan (David and Jennifer) and cannot wait 6 months or longer the DVD is available from Amazon.de now (New and Used).


Both SD and Blu Ray are available, I opted for the SD and will wait until it becomes available in the states for the Blu Ray (not sure if it's region free plus the price is a little steep in Euros).


Great sound track also!

Highly recommended for hard core Lynch (David or Jennifer) fans!


For everyone else it's definitely worth a rent.

 

[Brian Conrad]

Finally got around to watching this last night and enjoyed it. Good dark Lynchian fare. One thing I had a problem with is that I grew up in rural America and even where I live now the rural parts of counties are patroled by the country sheriff not police. Maybe that isn't true everywhere. I'll listen to the commentary tonight to see if there is an explanation. Jennifer seems to go much darker in her stories than her dad.

 

[oink]

At the top of my queue...BD too.

 

[Ron Temple]

I have to agree with the comments, though for me, it was interesting, not compelling.


I hadn't looked at Airboss' spoiler, but the same thing happened to me.

 

[oink]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Temple /forum/post/17250647


I hadn't looked at Airboss' spoiler, but the same thing happened to me.

Yeah, me too.

But the movie is done so well...with that weird sense of atmosphere her JL's Daddy is famous for.

I really couldn't find a fault with this film.

Very well crafted, with fine performances.

 

[PooperScooper]

I watched this the other night. Not bad.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Same thing happened to me. Early in the movie I realized the twist. I deliberately try not to figure out what's going on so I can enjoy more movies. This one just popped out at me.

larry

 

[Morpheo]



Quote:
Originally Posted by PooperScooper /forum/post/17254025


I watched this the other night. Not bad.
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Same thing happened to me. Early in the movie I realized the twist. I deliberately try not to figure out what's going on so I can enjoy more movies. This one just popped out at me.

larry

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) I must admit I didn't see it coming right from the beginning, eventhough I figured something wasn't quite right with Bill Pullman's character

I think it became clear to me when the cops go in the car with Julia Ormond... I really liked the movie btw, very "lynchian" indeed.

 

[Ron Temple]

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) I was tipped off as soon as they arrived at the police station...at least my radar was...then the first palm touching scene during the first interrogation cemented it. I guess we all saw something coming, so maybe it wasn't as disguised as my first impression. You see enough twisty plots and you start expecting them

 

[oink]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Temple /forum/post/17258319


You see enough twisty plots and you start expecting them

Sorry, Ron.

I decided to take the SPOILER off so we can discuss this....

Question: Is this a reflection of screenwriting by-the-numbers?

Or a lack of imagination by filmmakers?

Or are the "creative" powers in Hollywood not as special as believed?

Are economics driving this trend (and it sure does feel like a trend to me)?

Is the "safe" bet to screenwriting the only bet?

 

[rdgrimes]

I think some people leap to the conclusion that if they spotted the plot twist it must be "bad" writing. The opposite can be true. The clues are put there deliberately. There are plenty of examples of films where the audience is in on the twist and it can work very well. The task for the writers is to make the film interesting for those who spot the clues AND for those who don't.

 

[mproper]



Quote:
Originally Posted by rdgrimes /forum/post/17258786


I think some people leap to the conclusion that if they spotted the plot twist it must be "bad" writing. The opposite can be true. The clues are put there deliberately. There are plenty of examples of films where the audience is in on the twist and it can work very well. The task for the writers is to make the film interesting for those who spot the clues AND for those who don't.

Exactly true. Bad writing is putting in a twist that is impossible to figure out by watching the movie.


Good writing will fool most of the people, but there always be people who can figure it out. Those that didn't should be able to re-watch the movie and slap themselves on the forehead for not picking up the obvious (in hindsight) clues.


I watched Sixth Sense on opening day and never saw the twist coming. Immediately bought tickets for the next show, and it was like the clues were hitting me over the head on a second viewing, so I count that as good writing. I felt like an idiot for not picking up on it, but I believe it fooled the majority of us who did not know anything about the movie (or even that there was a twist).


On the flipside, there are movies that throw in a twist that makes no sense at all given what has been presented in the movie.

 

[oink]



Quote:
Originally Posted by mproper /forum/post/17259368


Exactly true. Bad writing is putting in a twist that is impossible to figure out by watching the movie.


Good writing will fool most of the people, but there always be people who can figure it out. Those that didn't should be able to re-watch the movie and slap themselves on the forehead for not picking up the obvious (in hindsight) clues.


On the flipside, there are movies that throw in a twist that makes no sense at all given what has been presented in the movie.

Agree 101%.

 

[Ron Temple]

I certainly don't think that the writer(s) of Surveillance botched it,
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) but their were factors in retrospect that subtlely tipped it early, then reinforced it even before it became obvious. I won't go into specifics, but those of us that noted it saw the trend from the shaping of the scenes. Once your nose is in the wind, it's pretty easy to tell where the story is going. Even so, I wasn't disappointed in the unfolding...just knew it was coming.

 

[thehun]

Since this was done on the premise of "who done it", the "twist" should be quiet obvious. So I would say it was written as it should be as far as that is concerned. Now the rest is another story, like some of the characters that belongs to a parallel universe, and they become a distraction which is not good IMO. But once again the "love it or hate it" isn't quiet right, because there are things that good here[editing pacing, some of the acting] and stuff there aren't[some of the writing, directing and acting], which sadly makes this film rather forgettable on the grand scale.

 

[oink]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Temple /forum/post/17263190


I certainly don't think that the writer(s) of Surveillance botched it,
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) Spoiler  
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) but their were factors in retrospect that subtlely tipped it early, then reinforced it even before it became obvious. I won't go into specifics, but those of us that noted it saw the trend from the shaping of the scenes. Once your nose is in the wind, it's pretty easy to tell where the story is going. Even so, I wasn't disappointed in the unfolding...just knew it was coming.

Quote:
Originally Posted by thehun /forum/post/17345199


Since this was done on the premise of "who done it", the "twist" should be quiet obvious. So I would say it was written as it should be as far as that is concerned. Now the rest is another story, like some of the characters that belongs to a parallel universe, and they become a distraction which is not good IMO. But once again the "love it or hate it" isn't quiet right, because there are things that good here[editing pacing, some of the acting] and stuff there aren't[some of the writing, directing and acting], which sadly makes this film rather forgettable on the grand scale.

It is hard to argue on an intellectual level against these posts...

But I would disagree with thehun this is a forgettable film.

I feel this was well done and worth remembering.

 

[Josh Z]

So, this isn't as awful as Boxing Helena, then?

 

[Aliens]



Quote:
Originally Posted by thehun /forum/post/17345199


which makes this film rather forgettable on the grand scale.

Film? What film?

I saw this when HDNet Movies did a preview in June and thought it was really weird. The police force was simply bizarre. I gave it 2.5 out of 5, which is generous now that I look back on it, and I was one of those, for whatever reason, that didn’t see the twist until about 5 minutes beforehand. Maybe it was because I forgot about the movie before it got to that point.

 

[Ron Temple]

I'm not a Spoiler phobe, but revealing the fact that there is a twist pretty much ruins the film for a first timer since it's fairly apparent to most of us what it is. Oh well, I guess the glass is broken now.

 

[thehun]

It's oink's fault, he mentioned it first.

 

[Ron Temple]



Quote:
Originally Posted by thehun /forum/post/17350445


It's oink's fault, he mentioned it first.

Yeah, oink's been on a roll lately