Reviews

Was that Cineroom review written by an adult? Wretched.

"I love a coward!"

Pretty mediocre reviews unfortunately.

http://www.shockya.com/news/2016/09/04/brimstone-movie-review/
Rating was C- overall. Acting got a B though.

http://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/brimstone-review-venice-film-festival-dakota-fanning-guy-pearce-1201851701/

For all of Martin Koolhoven’s talent, a hifalutin exploitation picture like “Brimstone” has too much — and not enough — on its mind.

With its punishing 149-minute running time, relentlessly gloomy tone but ultimately principled moral message, it feels like a sermon delivered by an extremely cine-literate preacher.

Ultimately, Brimstone is built on a “feminist” concept in the same way that relentlessly repeating “feminism” until you can only hear disjointed syllables equals talking about feminism. Even worse, this concept only relies on the repeated, repetitive abuse of multiple generations of women in order to emerge, and is diminished by various self-satisfied, cheap-thrills choices that feel badly out of place. Shame, as there was a more articulated, sui generis western in here somewhere.

C Rating

ok Variety....I'm offended with what they say about the Dutch and their view on incest....it is just as forbidden here as it is elsewhere!!! When I read that I stopped reading the rest....why bother....spreading lies about my country!! We are NOT liberal about sex with minors...People who do that and get caught end up in jail....yes...just like in the US...they end up in jail!!!

I saw it at LFF and thought it was awful: the only good aspects being Dakota who is alright and the young teenager who plays young Liz (Joanna as she is known then), Emilia Jones who is particularly great.

The most unfortunate element of the film, as I see it is that it is a very serious subject matter (incest and sexual feelings towards one’s own children and grandchildren) but it is handled in a rather bizarre way in which the film initially and at several later points, feels like a horror film where all the terrible things that happen feel as though they may have some mythological cause rather than being realistic. Mainly due to The Reverend (Guy Pearce) who from the outset looms like a Vampire and it seems like he is plausibly not a real human and something other than reality is going on here. Especially given that it is clear that Liz knows something we don't but she's mute so the audience doesn't know what at the start.

It’s such a strange film. It feels like it lasts for about a day. The structure I suppose works for the story. But the story just keeps getting more and more awful, yet not in a way where you’re particularly shocked by where it goes. But indeed in a very gruesome way.

It’s brutal, intentionally misogynistic, hopeless, gruesome, relentless and not a nice watch and it hasn’t got anything interesting to say that I took from it at least. Unless you like to watch women and children (and the odd man too who has the misfortune to get too close to Liz) relentlessly tortured and killed for three hours, with no point at all to it all...

Although at least Kit Harrington as a Yee-Haw cowboy made me laugh. I am not sure I was supposed to laugh, but I found him very amusing in this role. Am I alone...