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Reviews
Den tredje vågen (2003)
A great movie
I've just seen this movie tonight on Melbourne's SBS TV channel and had to see what others had thought of it (a pity the professional reviews are all in languages other than English). No matter. While it took a while for the plot to get going, I was engrossed from the beginning. It's great to see non-Hollywood actors (who can also act) in a good movie. For me, seeing unfamiliar faces in a thriller/drama adds to its impact, which doesn't often happen when I see so-called Hollywood "stars" who just can't forget their "star" quality... (eg Cage, Cruise).
Some of the events in The Third Wave relied a little too much on coincidence to be believable, especially toward the end. And the Munich riots in the last section were rather "over the top" (I thought I was watching 28 Days Later at one point) - it was reassuring to read others' comments that such wild behaviour wasn't typical of protests in Munich.
Nevertheless I was totally involved - I initially didn't have a clue who was to be trusted (thanks to a good script) - and the film's overall quality warranted my forgiving its unlikely coincidences.
28 Days Later... (2002)
An intriguing and engaging film
I haven't read all the posted comments yet (I browsed through several late last night after seeing this visually stunning and atmospheric film on TV).
A few posts mentioned a "happy ending." The version broadcast here in Melbourne last night did have a happy ending (the three survivors have escaped to the Lakes District and are apparently about to be 'saved' when their large fabric HELLO sign is seen by the jet fighter pilots), then we had all the credits.
This was followed by a black screen with the words "...what if" in the lower right corner, followed by another sequence (a coda) in a hospital operating room, showing Selena's unsuccessful attempts to save Jim, after which she and Hannah leave and walk away into the distance along the hospital corridor - The (real) End.
While this sequence cast a suitably bleak pall over the entire movie (bleakness was one of its strong points), and was a more fitting conclusion than the earlier, clichéd "happy ending" it also made sense of a very short out-of-context sequence seen earlier (Selena filling a hypodermic needle).
There was an interesting scene earlier in the film (when Jim, Selena and Hannah and her father are trying to sleep outdoors) where we're led to believe that what we're seeing is actually happening, only to find that it's Jim's dream.
The whole of the pre-credits sequence (the 'happy' ending, including the deux ex machina of the jet plane) was also Jim's dream, but this time as he was dying, despite Selena's efforts, from his gunshot wound.