I saw this on TV and it was prefaced by a short interview with the director / co-writer. His aim was to show raw reality and if that meant some sequences bordered on the over extended then so be it. The longer your nose was rubbed in it (my words not his) the better you would learn the truth. Trouble is everything seemed over extended so the technique lost its impact.
Nothing in the film offended me as such, certainly not the graphic nudity of the sex-for-money scenes which were part of the films core - human exploitation, who is most degraded by it and how do you get out from under it.
In his intro the director repeatedly stated that the truth does no need to be embellished. However I felt that philosophy was an after the fact justification of a film which seemed badly wanting in terms of editorial input and basic direction.
Most scenes were in medium shot using a single camera. Maybe that's all he had. For me that single technique used in such a long film ended up distancing me from the characters. It created a peep show feel where what was promised were insights.
Although I never lost sympathy and concern for the plight of the Ukrainian nurse and some of her charges I ended not caring about almost everyone else - largely because of the 'distancing' camera work.
Many viewers already know that some people with a little money / power can be complete bastards to people with neither and desperate for either. It doesn't take over 2 hours to sell that message.
Watch it on DVD - have your thumb hovering over fast forward.
Nothing in the film offended me as such, certainly not the graphic nudity of the sex-for-money scenes which were part of the films core - human exploitation, who is most degraded by it and how do you get out from under it.
In his intro the director repeatedly stated that the truth does no need to be embellished. However I felt that philosophy was an after the fact justification of a film which seemed badly wanting in terms of editorial input and basic direction.
Most scenes were in medium shot using a single camera. Maybe that's all he had. For me that single technique used in such a long film ended up distancing me from the characters. It created a peep show feel where what was promised were insights.
Although I never lost sympathy and concern for the plight of the Ukrainian nurse and some of her charges I ended not caring about almost everyone else - largely because of the 'distancing' camera work.
Many viewers already know that some people with a little money / power can be complete bastards to people with neither and desperate for either. It doesn't take over 2 hours to sell that message.
Watch it on DVD - have your thumb hovering over fast forward.