Monthly Archives: March 2010

The Ghost Writer

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by Jonas Kyratzes

If I had to describe Roman Polanski’s The Ghost Writer in words that sound like a perfume commercial, I’d describe it as a film of “quiet intensity.” As I thought about the movie after coming out of the cinema, those are the two words that popped into my mind over and over again: quiet intensity. And realism. But not the kind of realism that mediocre artists create by having characters stand around and be unpleasant a lot – in other words, not “What is it, Sebastian? I’m rearranging matches.” No, this is realism as in this feels like it’s real.

The Ghost Writer is compelling in a way few movies are these days. Your eyes are glued to the screen, you try to observe every detail and interpret every line of dialogue; something which, thankfully, the movie allows you to do. From the first to the last shot, you’re entranced by the atmosphere and the story and the characters. You’re living in their world, and observing events that matter. When something happens, you react on a very personal/emotional level.

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Twilight: New Moon

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by Verena Kyratzes

[scrippet]EXT. THE INTERNET – NIGHT

JONAS and VERENA are talking in your head.

JONAS
I’m not sure whether it’s really a good idea to start with the Twilight review. I mean, it’s really funny, but we made this big point that Commentarium isn’t about hating movies, it’s about loving them, about being analytical and interesting and… I don’t know, it feels too easy.

VERENA
It’s not easy at all! I had to watch this movie.[/scrippet]

To get it out of the way: No, I haven’t seen the first one, and I haven’t read the books, either. Still, I dare feel qualified to say something on the subject. Should you disagree, please take your disagreement somewhere else.

Backstory: A while ago, driven by scientific curiosity and nothing else to do, a friend and I watched Twilight: New Moon.

The results were as follows:

  1. We managed to lose 130 unrecoverable minutes of our young lives.
  2. A movie doesn’t need to look bad to be bad.
  3. I still think that Robert Pattinson got hit in the face with a baseball bat when he was a kid. It’s really the only explanation.

*deep breath*

It’s sad how good this movie looks. Good in the sense of sets, costumes, photography; not werewolves. A lot of money went into Twilight: New Moon, and it’s easy to see that. In a world where I all too often leave the cinema wondering where the hell they put the millions of dollars that they spent on the damn movie, I cannot fault Twilight for its look. For a lot of other things maybe – like, say, existing – but not for its look.

So, you may ask, what’s my problem with Twilight? It’s so nice and romantic and Christian. Well, I might answer, that’s my problem right there.

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Welcome to Commentarium

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Hello there!

We’d like to welcome you to Commentarium.net, a new website dedicated to the arts of cinema and television. Commentarium is a website/blog for all those of you who, like us, are still enthusiastic about the moving image, who get excited about new movies, and don’t thoughtlessly buy into the bitching and hating that often follows the release of a hotly-anticipated movie. Commentarium is for those of you who enjoy thinking and talking and joking about movies.

Commentarium isn’t fashionably cynical. Commentarium doesn’t hate Hollywood. Commentarium has a sense of humor.

What can you expect from Commentarium? Well, here’s a list:

  • Reviews. Some funny, some analytical, some both. Always written with enthusiasm for the form, if not for the results.
  • Commentary. From storytelling trends to the latest developments in filmmaking to the injustice of the Oscars, our thoughts on what’s going on in the world of film and TV.
  • Analysis. Sometimes you need to dig deeper into a film or series to get more out of it. We love that.
  • Damn Sneerers! Named after a quotation of William Blake’s, this series of articles will focus on those films and series that have been unjustly attacked by the critics and then buried by the thoughtless repetition of half-baked ideas.
  • Lists. Top tens, top fives… lists are fun and informative, as long as you don’t take them too seriously.
  • Guest Articles. Interesting thoughts and positions by guest writers.
  • Podcasts. Because some more discussions are just more fun when you can hear people talk.
  • And much more! It sounds like a terrible cliché, but it’s true. We have more ideas, and will let you know about these when the time is right.

Feel free to leave a comment and say hi. If you enjoy our articles, we’ll appreciate any support we can get: from sharing an article on Facebook or Twitter to a small donation. By the way: we promise never to bother you with ads or any such nonsense. We’re here for the stories; let’s have fun.