rst85 Reviews

The Brothers Karamazov (1958)

It's impossible....

[3/10 · 2 July 2006]

It's impossible to make a film based on such a book as the "Brothers Karamzov" by F.M. Dostojevsky.

Richard Brooks is a great director, but that film is on a very low level.

The worst part of the film was the ending. Well, let's think of the book. In the end we have the "guilty" Dimitrij Karamazov. Afterwards they sent him to Siberia. In the end, the famous epilogues of Dostojevsky, the friends and family making a plan to save him. But that's it ... a nd now the film takes two steps more and shows us an illusion ending of the escape of Dimitry and Gruschenka(I think). just from the moral point I'm sure that Dostojevsky would finish the book with an open end because one the one hand he is not guilty(Smerdjakov is the real murderer) and so he have to be a free man. But on the other hand he goes to his father to kill him, so he has decided to commit the crime... that's a moral dilemma and so the following point is an open end...well, for real ,it's just not full open.

William Shatner as Aljoscha Karamazov... I'm sorry! --> NO!!!

The others characters playing in a good performance as we have to expect it from such great actors ... In front of course a superb performance of Yul Breynner as Dimitrij. I think that there are not many actors who can play this part in a better way.

But as I said in the beginning: This book is unadaptable. It never should be film in two hours that's impossible. I think that there are some 'longer films, so maybe they could do the right thing... But I just keep the opinion that this book can't be adapted.

So - 3 points:

A point for the great director Richard Brooks

A point for a superb performance of Yul Brynner

Finally: A point for one of the greatest writers of all time: Dostojevsky

Fabian (1980)

Just some good aspects

[5/10 · 2 July 2006]

When I think of the book "Fabian" by Erich Kästner, I think of a good and all in all a funny book - somehow also provocation...

The film isn't make that way. Well, maybe the provocation is similar to the book The end of the book is a fantastic joke on the life of the main character and the most important point is, and for me that's missing in the film, the recipient can understand the decision he makes when he jumps from the bridge...

But there are some good aspects in the film... For example the character who play the role of Fabian has on of the brightest smiles I ever have seen in an film - and he is playing his part well. What I liked about the adaption were the authentic scenes from the book - just as in the house of the lawyer in the beginning and the following situation with Fabian and his wife. That was a good start, but the way wasn't gone consequently. And that's what the book had done.

All in all: 5 points!