Customer Reviews

The River

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

that's the quote from Variety that's on the DVD box, and I couldn't agree more. The acting in this film is top notch. The film follows a range of characters over the course of one autumn day in Finland. Included among them are a gay couple trying to keep their affair secret, an adulterous wife, and a young mother contemplating suicide. The film manages to portray all of its characters in a very real and believable way. Unlike some "day in the life" films, this one manages to be an ordinary day with some very extraordinary events. Two thumbs up!!!

...in a bad way. "The River" (or "Joki") takes a painfully familiar formula (ex. Robert Altman's "Short Cuts," as if we needed another), sets it in Finland, and leaves its viewer stranded. The film is structured around a woman who appears to be attempting suicide by drowning her and her baby in a river; the side-stories follow from there. Unfortunately, the "we're-all-connected" theme of the film feels less genuine than even the the most uninspired of the subgenre. The film feels more like a bunch of half-assembled ideas patched together solely because the director didn't know how to conclude (or leave interestingly inconclusive) each story. The sad part is that the film is far from dull; yet your endurance through the entirity may seem futile by the end-credits.