Post by joekiddlouischama on Apr 1, 2019 7:31:25 GMT
I actually enjoyed Greta quite a bit—I consider it a "good" film and a surprisingly effective entry in the stalker genre. The movie is engrossing, creative, fairly atmospheric, and relatively freaky, and the simple imagery (for instance, Greta in her sharp, crisp outfits, still and menacing in space) is dramatic and darkly elegant.
I feel that the film works for three primary reasons.
First, the filmmakers nailed the casting. Isabelle Huppert and Chloë Grace Moretz are well-suited for their respective roles, and as a result an otherwise tenuous plot feels sufficiently credible.
Second, having an older woman stalk a young one offers a fresh variation on this genre. The combination is unusual.
Third, making Greta a Hungarian immigrant pretending to be French (for the record, Huppert is actually French), when combined with the dynamics of the plot and the visuals of her home, lends the movie a European fairy tale vibe—think Hansel and Gretel. Combining this latent aspect with the New York City setting adds another level of freshness to the American stalker genre. Moreover, using Ireland's National Symphony Orchestra as part of the score only adds to this classical European sensibility.
Of course, Greta is not profound or thematically weighty, but it does make for a compelling genre movie. And while I understand the complaints about the seemingly typical plot machinations toward the end—
Overall, Greta is certainly not Strangers on a Train (Alfred Hitchcock, 1951) or Play Misty for Me (Clint Eastwood, 1971), but it is certainly better than the average stalker movie.
I feel that the film works for three primary reasons.
First, the filmmakers nailed the casting. Isabelle Huppert and Chloë Grace Moretz are well-suited for their respective roles, and as a result an otherwise tenuous plot feels sufficiently credible.
Second, having an older woman stalk a young one offers a fresh variation on this genre. The combination is unusual.
Third, making Greta a Hungarian immigrant pretending to be French (for the record, Huppert is actually French), when combined with the dynamics of the plot and the visuals of her home, lends the movie a European fairy tale vibe—think Hansel and Gretel. Combining this latent aspect with the New York City setting adds another level of freshness to the American stalker genre. Moreover, using Ireland's National Symphony Orchestra as part of the score only adds to this classical European sensibility.
Of course, Greta is not profound or thematically weighty, but it does make for a compelling genre movie. And while I understand the complaints about the seemingly typical plot machinations toward the end—
not making certain that she is dead, running into the basement (of all places), the indifference of law enforcement, the clueless nature of the father
—I also feel that there is self-awareness at play. Greta is not a parody, but the movie—the final scene and frame in particular—suggest that writer-director Neil Jordan is well aware of the genre conventions that he is toying with even as he may be redeploying them. For instance, the inverted nightmare sequence is clever and creative, keeping the audience guessing and showing that the movie is offering a somewhat ironic take on the usual machinations. To quote this review in The Wrap:Between the psycho stalker, the “don’t go in the basement!” moment and the sudden shocks that exist solely to make an audience jump, this is Jordan doing fun, schlocky horror, way beyond the high-toned horror he did in “Interview With the Vampire.”
‘Greta’ Film Review: Neil Jordan’s Psycho Stalker Flick Is Bloody Good Fun
‘Greta’ Film Review: Neil Jordan’s Psycho Stalker Flick Is Bloody Good Fun
Overall, Greta is certainly not Strangers on a Train (Alfred Hitchcock, 1951) or Play Misty for Me (Clint Eastwood, 1971), but it is certainly better than the average stalker movie.