Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

I saw this film at the Ghent (Belgium) film festival 2013, where it was part of the Global Cinema section. The descriptions on festival website, Facebook and IMDb sounded intriguing. But I can tell upfront that it was a disappointment, after all. The movie starts wrong, letting us endure half an hour of tittle-tattle, partying etcetera, which time could have been spent more fruitfully. It was probably meant to gradually introduce the characters involved. It did not work for me. I got lost in the process to remember who would become important for the plot, and who was just entourage. After that, there were a few potentially memorable moments, but the film makers missed all the opportunities without exception.Some examples of what I found wrong:Firstly, the mother of the victim held an impressive and moving speech in church during the memorial service. This could have been the trigger for interesting developments, but it was not. It should have been placed much sooner in the script anyway, and could have been the perfect point where people start fighting with their conscience, and contemplating arguments pro and con, so that we can feel along with their reasoning.Secondly, the conversation with his father where Richard finally confesses what has happened, is also poorly written and executed. The intro about the tree house is negligent and a waste of time. It is still not clear to me how and why Richard decided to confess, being visibly hesitant at first. He evenly could have chosen to lie to his father and deny every involvement.Thirdly, several friends of Richard knew more or less what happened, and one of them could have leaked the truth by accident (to police, to parents, to other friends, whatever). Conversely, they all saw the victim standing up again after the confrontation, but wasted that observation to defend themselves to everyone why they did not make an issue out of the fight and check the victim's condition, or even call anonymously for an ambulance.Finally, the police investigation falters for reasons unclear to us. This could have been exploited much better while Richard's friends knew more of the fatal accident than they told the police. This could have been excellent material for a so-called prisoner's dilemma. Alas, the police was not that competent in the case at hand, and this opportunity also got wasted.At first sight it does not seem useful to add my user review to the many that already appear on IMDb, given already a few as negative as I am. On the other hand, their negativism has many other reasons than I had, so the above may be useful for some readers anyway. This film received a lowly 50th place for the audience award, with score 3.64 out of 5.

"What Richard Did", which I saw as part of the New Zealand International Film Festival, is a low-key but very powerful and morally complex film.It features an excellent performance from newcomer Jack Reynor. While his titular character is obviously charismatic and charming throughout, Reynor's performance explores the depth of the character, particularly his restrained rage. There's a scene near the end of the film where he breaks down alone in his family's beach house, and it's truly heartbreaking and memorable. You really feel for the character's plight throughout the movie.My only real complaint would be, by contrast, the performance of Lars Mikkelsen. He's not a good crier at all and one key scene in the film almost had me laughing because of his acting. A small flaw in an otherwise highly recommended movie.

Irish screenwriter and director Lenny Abrahamson's third feature film which was written by UK screenwriter Malcolm Campbell, is inspired by a novel from 2008 called "Bad Day in Black Rock" by Irish author Kevin Power. It premiered in Ireland, was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 37th Toronto International Film Festival in 2012, was shot on location in Ireland and is an Irish production which was produced by Irish producer Ed Guiney. It tells the story about a widely held, sociable, responsible and outgoing 18-year-old student named Richard Karlsen who lives with his father, who has his future all figured out and who is spending his summer with his companions.Subtly and intimately directed by Irish filmmaker Lenny Abrahamson, this quietly paced fictional tale which is narrated mostly from the protagonist's point of view, draws an unsettling and rarely afflicting portrayal of a prototypical son who, as the title suggests, does something that changes him and his relationship with his family and friends. While notable for its naturalistic milieu depictions, sterling cinematography by cinematographer David Grennan, production design by production designer Stephanie Clerkin and use of sound, this character-driven story where an athlete from a wealthy background befriends a female student named Lara who is attached to an outsider named Conor depicts an internal study of character where so little is said and so much is going on, and contains a fine score by composer Stephen Rennicks.This nuanced and somewhat romantic drama which is set in a town in South Dublin, Ireland where a rugby player is entering a new phase in his life, is impelled and reinforced by its cogent narrative structure, subtle character development and continuity, multifaceted protagonist, psychological depth, authenticity and the fine acting performances by Irish actor Jack Reynor, Danish actor Lars Mikkelsen and actress Róisin Murphy in her debut feature film role. An atmospheric, dense and mindful examination of consciousness where the gravity of this story which origins comes from real events which took place in the capital city of Ireland in 2000 is sensed in every single frame.

Richard is an affable Irish senior, on the brink of the rest of his life. He finds love, has good friends, loving parents. It's all rainbows and butterflies - until a surprising accident throws his entire future off course. Or so we think? I think the problem with this film isn't that it's badly made, it's just that it didn't exactly NEED to be made. This story has been told before, in better (even more illustrative ways). I kept expecting the rug to be pulled from under many a few times during it but I was never surprised, just continually disappointed. And quite frankly - bored. Furthermore--and this is something that struck me as odd and disappointing--I remember seeing quite a similar film (in terms of plot and imagery) called 'Paranoid Park'. It came out in 2007, and was directed by (you guessed it?) - Gus Van Sant. It was a little ball of atmosphere, full of subtle beautiful music and ambient colours. Sparse dialogue, too, but it had a slow startling impact on me, near the end. Still, it wasn't exemplary or particularly memorable. 'What Richard Did' follows the exact cookie-cutter formula (as niche as that sounds)- to an even more underwhelming effect. I doubt I'll remember it a week from now. The dialogue was stilted (more unrealistic than realistic, ironically), the characters were neither sympathetic or unsympathetic. They were just.. blank. I didn't really care what happened to any of them by the end, and guess what - not much did. I'd say if you love laboriously prolonged scenes and the odd scenic take, watch this. Else - you're wasting your time.2/10