The film Winter Sleepers took the audience on a twisty-curvy journey through the experiences of five people, whose lives intersected in an ironic and sometimes tragic way. The plot was somewhat Mementoesque fashion, although the use of multiple flash-backs and flash-forwards weren't employed. I was impressed to see that that this film came out in 1997, several years before Memento; I wonder if the idea for Memento was somewhat inspired by this film.
The film did a good job of creating a setting that was enticing and believable. The scenery of small-town Bavaria in winter was very pastoral, and the mountain shots (presumably the Alps) were breathtaking. The lighting was soft and warm, creating the sensation of being snug despite the wintry beauty outside. The coziness and clutteredness of the character Rebecca's house also helped to create this illusion.
**Plot Spoilers Ahead** I felt that the plot and/or character development could have been a bit tighter. For instance, Theo's character seems to spin in circles for a good portion of the movie, and when he finally finds his direction and decides to take action, the action he decides to take is shocking and tragic. In a twist of fate, he ends up driving Marco off a cliff for committing a crime he didn't commit. I wasn't too sad to see Marco go, given his nasty habit of cheating on his girlfriend; however, I found Theo's actions to be implausible given the previous context of his character, and his character's identity essentially was undermined. In addition to this minor flaw, there was a general failure to resolve the conflicts set forth in the film in any meaningful way. When the film ended, I was left unsatisfied and a little disappointed. I know that European movies don't always end in the same perfect-world way that most American movies do; however, I still felt that more resolution could have been achieved in this film.
Overall, however, I did enjoy the film very much, and felt that the strong points outweighed the week points. I would give this film an 8 out of 10 for its ability to draw my attention with an interesting plot and likeable characters.
The film did a good job of creating a setting that was enticing and believable. The scenery of small-town Bavaria in winter was very pastoral, and the mountain shots (presumably the Alps) were breathtaking. The lighting was soft and warm, creating the sensation of being snug despite the wintry beauty outside. The coziness and clutteredness of the character Rebecca's house also helped to create this illusion.
**Plot Spoilers Ahead** I felt that the plot and/or character development could have been a bit tighter. For instance, Theo's character seems to spin in circles for a good portion of the movie, and when he finally finds his direction and decides to take action, the action he decides to take is shocking and tragic. In a twist of fate, he ends up driving Marco off a cliff for committing a crime he didn't commit. I wasn't too sad to see Marco go, given his nasty habit of cheating on his girlfriend; however, I found Theo's actions to be implausible given the previous context of his character, and his character's identity essentially was undermined. In addition to this minor flaw, there was a general failure to resolve the conflicts set forth in the film in any meaningful way. When the film ended, I was left unsatisfied and a little disappointed. I know that European movies don't always end in the same perfect-world way that most American movies do; however, I still felt that more resolution could have been achieved in this film.
Overall, however, I did enjoy the film very much, and felt that the strong points outweighed the week points. I would give this film an 8 out of 10 for its ability to draw my attention with an interesting plot and likeable characters.