trondbj Reviews

Lakki... The Boy Who Could Fly (1992)

Hilarious, but only for the die-hard fan.

[13 December 2001]

Wam and Venneroed doesn`t deliver the goods in a broad sense of view, although there are some hilarious moments. But I don`t think the humor is done deliberately. And the film hits the spot only within the die hard fans of the Wam and Venneroeds movies.

"Lakki" would have been a far better movie, if Wam and Venneroed have used a little more irony and humor. The result could and would have been far better, because the plot is rather original, although the acting is poorly.

The title on the release for this film was originally: "Gutten som kunne fly", but when the audience rejected it and the critics gladly butchered it, the producers changed the name to: "Lakki", because the title had a more youth-full theme to it....it didn`t help much,I`m sorry to say.

In my opinion this is one of many cult-classic from Wam and Venneroed. The dialog is so pathetic and static, so the result is hilarious. But only for the die-hard fans of Norwegian social realism and movies from the company Mephisto films.

Julia Julia (1981)

Trashy and baesjy comedy.

[12 December 2001]

The dynamic duo Wam and Venneroed made "Julia Julia" in 1981. This is supposed to be a comedy about a girl Julia (played by Gunilla Olsson).

Julia meets different people, while she is struggling to become independent and unbound from her past life. But even though some of the acting is good and joyfull the movie lacks in the story and the film is kind of static in the progression.

Julia Julia is supposed to be a comedy, but the result is far from good.

Wam and Venneroed is two of my favorite norwegian directors, and I love most of their movies, but "Julia Julia" isn`t among them.

The Dream Castle (1986)

Disturbing and laughable social realism

[12 December 2001]

This movie makes you laugh and it makes you cry. A sad and funny story about life in a collective in Oslo-Norway in the late seventies/early eighties. Marxism and Socialism is the background of the characters in this movie. The post-WWII generation with ideals like socialism and marxism is vividly described in this incredible good movie.

All problems in the collective between the 3-4 families(about 15-17 people) are solved in democratic fashion. But when time goes by, different views is day-lighted and some un-agreements between the otherwise so democratic and peaceful people, results in some fights and clashes among them.

The little world of democracy and socialism way of thinking in the collective becomes "disturbed" by individual differences. The new political world on the outside, with new views on matters is coloring the people in the collective.

Nudity, sex, violence, suicide, profanity, cursing.....oh yeah, this is social realism as I like it.

A disturbing and hilarious movie. This is the mother of scandinavian social realism. One of Wam and Venneroeds all time classics.

Demon Seed (1977)

This is THE sci-fi film of the seventies

[10/10 · 23 November 2001]

I admit it,I have been seduced by this sci-fi classic, there isn`t much to say, except this: DEMON SEED IS A MUST SEE!. Demon Seed contains critical and political views on the technology in the future. With an megalomanic computer which are taking over an house, and even get pregnant with the human lady of the house(played by Julie Christie)this movie contains suspense at the best. The computer takes over the house....but will the computer (which is called Proteus,if I remember correctly)take over the world...the answer is within each viewer. Not unlike Hal in 2001 the error is caused...as always by human behaviour.

The director of this masterpiece; Cammell, deserves a lot of credits for Demon Seed. The movie is a golden moment in the film history!

Westworld (1973)

Suspense and thrills in the great sci-fi classic westworld

[8/10 · 23 November 2001]

Yul Brynners best performance ever. Like the robots in science-gone-mad films as Saturn 3 and terminator He plays a crazy cold robot with one thought in mind; to kill. In an amusement park in a near future, where people can buy different historical holidays, like the title, the action of this is in the westworld scenario. cyborg sheriff, robotic hores etc. all living things is actually a robot. But something goes wrong....terrible wrong...If you like demon seed and other sci-fi films from the golden seventies...I would recommend this. Westworld`s theme contains a hash and critically view on the science and technology of mankind...