Customer Reviews

Triage

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

TRIAGE is a well chosen title for this film about who survives an who dies in war: at times those triage decisions are made by serendipity (read 'bad luck'), at times they are made by physicians or medics tending the wounded on the battlefield, and at times they are submerged in the apparent 'survivors' only to later crush the life from those who make it home. Writer/Director Danis Tanovic has adapted Scott Anderson's novel is a manner that carries the seemingly simple act of 'triage' throughout the film, showing how that action can affect the lives of friends, family, and psychological wholeness of the victim.

Mark Walsh (Colin Farrell, in yet another powerful role) and his buddy David (Jamie Sives) are war photographers for a newspaper edited by Amy (Juliet Stevenson). Their current assignment is Kurdistan and the terrifying realities they not only experience but also commit to film are of such a horrid nature that they both are in shock: they not only witness killings and landmine explosion deaths, but they also watch one Dr. Talani (Branko Djuric) triage the wounded, deciding who can survive care and who is so near death that they are put aside to be later 'executed' by Dr. Talani in a compassionate gesture to end their futile suffering. The tension is so great that David decides to return home, leaving Mark to carry on the assignment. An explosion occurs and Mark is seriously injured but survives and after being tended by Dr. Talani he is encouraged to return home. There is no news as to where David is.

Mark returns home to his adoring Elena (Paz Vega), presents his photographs to Amy, and begins to heal: David's wife Diane (Kelly Reilly) is due to deliver their first child in two weeks and has had no word from David. We watch as Mark, eroded by his experiences in Kurdistan, retreat into a state of decline. Elena grows fearful as Mark, despite hospitalizations and medical care, continues to deteriorate and out of desperation she calls her grandfather Joaquin, a psychiatrist who treated the victims of the Spanish Civil War (Elena is still angry that her own grandfather treated the perpetrators of the destruction that war caused). Joaquin slowly brings Mark into the acceptance of how his mind has triaged the events in Kurdistan and leads Mark to discover the truths about incidents in what war for which he has blamed himself. We finally understand David's disappearance at the moment when his and Diane's child is born.

This is a tough story to watch: subtitles would help the audience understand the many dialects used in the film. But the message is clear and the acting is superb by every member of the cast, even very small but cogent cameos by Reece Ritchie as a boy in Beirut and Dada Ashi as a Ugandan woman - two of the early incidents Mark must remember and face in his work with Joaquin. The cinematography is dazzling, especially the use of flashbacks of a raging river so important in Mark's memory recall, and the constant focus on the blue and yellow tags that mark the triage decisions. This is another powerful anti-war film, this time as seen through the eyes of a non-combatant observer. It is important to see. Grady Harp, July 10

"Triage" was a real gem. I enjoyed it much more than "The Hurt Locker", although I was expecting the latter to be great and sadly it wasn't, and I was expecting the former to be mediocre and it was great. Maybe that has clouded my judgement ... but not by much. The story is in two parts. The first is dominated by Colin Farrell and takes place mostly in Kurdistan. Farrell plays a photo journalist (Mark) who goes from war to war filming and documenting the events with his friend (David) who is also a photojournalist. Only Farrell returns home and he is wounded. What has happened to his friend and why does Farrell keep having terrible nightmares? During this part we see why the movie is called "Triage".

The second part mostly in Dublin and is dominated by the legendary veteran actor, Christopher Lee. Lee plays a Spanish psychologist who has a 'shady' past and is (Elena) Farrell's wife's grandfather. They are not on good terms but Elena is desperate to save Farrell who is becoming more and more erratic and losing his mind.

Through Lee's help we see flashbacks as to what happened to David.

I found the story very moving. I am baffled as to why the movie was not given a general release. The acting is superb, especially by the two stars. Strangely, Lee's name is missing from the star credits listed by Amazon????

Highly recommended

C. G Wilson

this story baised in Kurdistan while Colin and his friend there for doing photographing, i can say its the best of Colin farrel he did excellent job and i was happy about this movie that showed something about my people (kurdish) how they suffered for freedom and fighting Saddam dictator, ofcurse it was nice to see farrel in Kurdish clothing

I would have given this film 5 stars if there were a bit more buoyancy in the script. Colin Farrell is brilliant as the lead character, Paz Vega is luminous as his wife, and the supporting cast does a great job. But the sparkling chemistry is between Farrell and the oh-so-accomplished Christopher Lee, who appears well into the film but is worth the wait. This is a graphic film and not easy to watch. Even so, although war is hell, it also is not exactly clinical depression. There seems to be a subtle lack of lift in the screenplay and direction. There are too few places where a smile and a sense of beauty break through. Even so, this is a dense drama that is well played, nicely filmed and worth watching more than once.

This is an excellent film abour war zone photo-journalism, and is Colin Farrell's best role to date. He is maturing as an actor; going deeper and deeper into character. The appearance of legendary actor, Christopher Lee, is also a plus. Highly recommend this for serious film buffs.

1 Disc Blu-Ray, released August 10, 2010

"Triage" was written and directed by Danis Tanovic based on the book by Scott Anderson. The story takes place in 1988 when Mark Walsh played by Colin Farrell and his friend and colleague David played by Jamie Sives travel to Kurdistan to take war photography. Mark is injured in the process and comes home to his wife, Elena Morales played by Paz Vega and David's pregnant wife, Diane played by Kelly Reilly with a case of PTSD and an incomplete memory of what happened.

This may be one of Colin Farrell's best performances as the emotionally complex often tortured photographer. He has an excitement about the work he and his partner are doing in Kurdistan and is able to distance himself emotionally for the most part until he becomes more directly involved. His last clear memory of his friend is of an argument they had about David wanting to leave and Mark wanting to stay and work more. Farrell plays well the escalating feelings of guilt and remorse as well as the pain his body has gone through. Farrell got rail-thin for this role making his body painful to look at. He is mentally confused and faces off with Christopher Lee as Elena's grandfather who in the past was a therapist for war criminals (another juicy role for Lee).

Paz Vega besides looking beautiful is fantastic at the discovery process that her husband is no longer the man she sent off to war. She is earnest in her demands of Mark and argues her beliefs with her grandfather with a fiery spirit despite asking for his help with Mark.

Kelly Reilly's performance as the pregnant Diana is very brave while still occasionally dropping down to show that vulnerability of her fears about whether he'll return.

War is always a painful thing to watch and this film focuses mostly on the effects of war on the injured in the field without much in the way of medical care and the families back home of those meant to document, not even fight and how they can get pulled into it. The word "triage" means sorting people into groups based on the likelihood that they would benefit from medical treatment based on the severity of their condition which is practiced in the area Mark and David are documenting.

This is a pretty decent drama unfolding bits of the missing pieces of the puzzle as it goes along from Mark's memory, but it is also sometimes hard to watch and I would not give it a second viewing.

Bonus Features:

There is a making-of "Triage" feature taken during the filming composed of interviews with the main cast and crew speaking about the book source of the film, the choice of actors, and the director. The "interviews" with the cast as a feature are really soundbites of bits of the interview that didn't fold neatly into the making-of feature. Lastly the behind-the-scenes footage is B Roll footage taken of the director and crew getting the actors and scenes ready to shoot without narration or explanation to what is going on. The names of all these bonus features make them sound like more than they really are.

Triage is a solid, thought provoking film set amongst the world of photo journalism in war torn countries. Whilst to the public their material is often just a news article or photo to peruse whilst reading the morning newspaper the toll it takes on these journalists to bring these stories to life is much darker and their plight often overlooked in the name of sensationalism. Triage examines the human experience of working in hostile environments and the repercussions of such actions. All the performers are great but as usual it is a much thinner than usual Colin Farrell who really shines here, filling his reporter with strength, weakness and tragedy to really capture the essence of a man truly torn apart by what he has witnessed and what he has done. Its a shame films like this slip through the cracks and end up straight in the back corners of video rental shops and retail outlets whilst shallow big budget dross appears at cinemas across the country regularly. Recommended.

This movie has some of the greatest acting Colin Farrell has ever done (in my opinion) I almost did not get to see it as I was not aware of it's release until I saw at Blockbuster!

Farrell and his best friend are photographers that travel to dangerous war zones trying to capture shots they may be paid for later for news, papers, etc.

After Farrell returns home without his best friend - and having been injured himself, questions start about where is his friend? What happened? He suffers from flashbacks and pschylogical issues that are affecting his physical being.

In every war story there does not have to be a 'hero'... with that being said there is a gentelman that tries to help Farrell remember what exactly happened so he may be able to move on with his life....that, to me, is a kind of hero.

Farrells' character literaly goes through hell while in the war zone and after he returns home. What his character remembers from all this will probably affect him forever.

Cannot stress enough the great acting from Farrell -

Highly Recommended

Although an interesting film featuring superb directing and acting, it bombed at the box office and the reason is obvious: the story does not have a hero and the only sympathetic character is Christopher Lee playing a Spanish psychiatrist and grandfather of Colin's wife in the film. Colin Farrell is mesmerizing but don't be blinded by his spectacular performance or "I Love Colin" fanfare.

Colin's character is an anti-hero, an inconsiderate thrill-seeker who lies to his wife and friends. Ostensibly, this tense drama is about a young, war photographer (Colin Farrell), who returns from Kurdistan during 1988 where he was directly involved in the death of his best friend. Although, the novel and screenplay portray Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the effects on friends and family, the story overlooks the bigger issue: men addicted to thrill, which was much better addressed in the Oscar-winning film Hurt Locker.

In reality, Colin's character is just another ego-driven young man, seeking excitement at the expense of his friend and family. He is selfish and irresponsible. Moreover, the film does not delve into the reality of his profession, which is documenting death and destruction. He is simply an an ambulance chaser or war paparazzi. He risks his life for no cause other than making money. There is nothing noble or noteworthy about his work and he pursues it at the expense of others including his wife. In reality, he is an ego-maniac who causes the death of his best friend and then wants absolution for his crime. Moreover, he blatantly lies about the death of his best friend to his wife and and the wife of his friend.

Paz Vega is excellent in her role as Colin's wife but like Colin her character is defective and unsympathetic despite superficial appearances. In reality, she is co-dependent, enabling Colin to risk his life simply for thrill. Colin doesn't really love her. He simply uses her. He only loves the thrill of war. Meanwhile, she is too insecure to depart or demand respect. Apparently, she enjoys playing the role of co-dependent mother or nurse.

All the actors are superb as is the direction. But, this is a story about a young man without a soul who has to confront reality and doesn't want to accept responsibility for his irresponsible actions. I see a narcissistic young man desperately seeking attention because he was neglected as a child. He is a tragic character incapable of loving others because he is self-consumed. It makes an interesting story but nobody likes a narcissist except himself. It is easy to see why the film bombed at the box office and never made it to general release. The only redeeming quality is the depiction of war, even if a minor conflict in a remote part of world. War is hell but even worse are rebels without a cause who cause others grief and despair simply to gratify their ego.

I cannot understand why this film was made. Who was the target audience? What is the message? And who cares about a rebel without a cause? Great acting doesn't save flawed characters or a dramatic story without a message. The cardinal rule of dramatic stories is that you must have a protagonist and antagonist. There must be conflict. This script is like a reality television story more appropriate for Jerry Springer.

As as side note, it is interesting how technology has eliminated some jobs. When the novel was written, war photography was still a profession. It is amusing to see Colin carry his 35mm film canisters back to Dublin for processing and then use a slide projector to review his photographs. Those days are long gone as are war photographers, having been replaced by anyone with a cellular phone. The revolutions during 2011 that toppled the government in Tunisia, Hosni Mubarark in Egypt and Muammar Quaddafi in Libya were primarily reported by indigenous fighters with cell phones linked to social-network internet sites.

If you watched the overthrow of Quaddafi in Libya, you may remember during the final day of the regime, Alex Crawford of Britain's Sky News riding into Tripoli in the back of a pickup truck with her face illuminated by a laptop computer screen as she talked into the laptop camera. The computer was connected to a small satellite dish, powered by the truck's cigarette lighter plug and linked to her global cellular telephone.

This movie is an honest look at trauma and war. The actors do an amazing job portraying the complexities of just how painful processing trauma, war, and loss can be. So very good. By far, Colin Farrell's best performance.