Such a frustrating disappointment

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Very nice film that really shows how the life in prison can be. Many of the prisoners are real bad guys, and some of them have actually been to prison in the very same place that the movie is shot before the prison closed in 2006.Also the main correctional officer Kim, is a real officer that actually used to work in the very same prison, and is now working in Denmarks newest high security prison that opened in October 2006.The movie shows a very harsh environment, just the way it actually was. When you watch it you get a real feeling of what it would be like to be in prison.Today the old prison is operating as a museum and many parts of the building has been left untouched since the last inmates were moved to the new prison.

I was astonished after the viewing of this authentic masterpiece. In the theatre, there were nearly only men. No gals. And you can guess why...No gals in this fierce movie, one of the best and most terrific of all times, concerning inmates, in the joint. The can. Oh, UN PROPHETE will remain a powerful film, I won't deny it, but this one is far more pessimistic, dark, bleak. THe scheme is almost the scheme, without the short lengths we could have in Jacques Audiard's feature. Everything here seems real, authentic, it doesn't seem that the characters are actors, but actual inmates and wardens. An absolute must see.

I first have to say that i'm not a professional critic. It is very hard for me to find the right words to describe any form of art.43 is my age and maybe i have seen many movies in my life. The movies i saw the day before 'R' were 'The good, the bad, the weird' and 'I saw the devil'. The first was very good fun and the latter from the same director gave me a feeling of: I don't want to witness this. I'm getting to old for this kind of excitement.So with that feeling in mind I red the summary of 'R'. I had also seen 'un prophete' (great movie btw). Comparisons here. Masterpiece there. etc etc. I had to see it.The feeling of not want to witness this stayed until the opening scenes with the shady music, and Rune going up the stairs. And stayed with me until the end. After seeing this movie a week ago I still want to cry. I now realise that the director bathed me 99 minutes in powerlessness. This movie literally gave me, besides a sadness that stretches and stretches, a genuine fear for the prison system in my own socially secured country.Musically this is a movie that won't disappear in the shadows of more stylistic films like 'The deer hunter', 'Once upon a time in the west' and more recently 'There will be blood'. All with their masterpiece defining music scores. In the prison the camera captures the non existing distance of stares: of guards, inmates, grandmothers, Rashid and Rune. And what this did to me emotionally, was something i never experienced so profound before. A movie that makes your heart cry is one thing, but to go beyond that and mix the acting with this kind of realism is very special.The last fifteen minutes with Rashid played with my sympathy for the main character and was a big switch but made also clear that the story doesn't stop. And with that last zoom out the fridge door closes again. Can you compare Radiohead with The Beatles. 'R' is in my opinion emotionally in a league of it's own. But keep in mind my age. Maybe i'm just approaching a midlife crisis where crying gets easier, and tears just trouble my judgement.

aw this film at it's press screening this morning at Edinburgh International Film Festival. I'd heard it was meant to be the next 'Un Prophete'. Certainly if you haven't seen 'Un Prophete' you may well think this film is brilliant. Those that have seen 'Un Prophete' however may go away a little bit disappointed. There is just too much that is the same in both films. Both the films explore the tough inner workings of a prison from the point of view of a new comer. We are not told why this main character is in prison, only that he maybe stabbed somebody. He seems to be a good guy who is trapped working for a gang in prison. He's made to do tasks he doesn't want to do so he isn't treated like dirt, or killed. there is also another gang in the prison made up of Albanians etc…etc….etc….It's the same old prison story that's getting told over and over. It is however a solid story so it's what they do with it that matters.They succeed in creating a likable main character that we sympathise with and support. They show how gritty and corrupt a Danish prison is. They do the whole thing with sexy camera angle's and expert editing.I was enjoying the movie, until I began to feel it wasn't going anywhere, then near the end we switch character perspective and follow a different character for the last fifteen minutes. For me, the story ends with our main character, I'm not interested in seeing his friend story for another 15minutes, that just didn't work for me. I saw others shifting uncomfortably in the audience as well. When the second end does come though it does hit with impact. I found myself wanting to look away as it was fairly intense.The film is on some levels very good, the soundtrack is perfect, well there's no songs just an intense score. The acting is amazing, the set is great, editing brilliant, script, pretty flawless. It's the story that just didn't grab me like it should've. There was nothing I hadn't seen before. It was a classic prison movie, done better than most, but not as good as 'Un Prophete' and 'Shawshank'. I was blown away by some shots in the film which were just incredible.'Un Prophete' for me is the best prison movie, it has everything, it is long, but justifiably. R is shorter at 90 minutes, but it was the end that spoiled it for me. If R had come out before 'Un Prophete' I'd probably like it better, but R doesn't explore much that 'Un Prophete' doesn't. I just wasn't interested in the last 15/20minutes. It's a shame, a lot of work has obviously gone into the film. It is still worth seeing. However I'd recommend most people just stick with 'Un Prophete'.www.duncansreviews.wordpress.com www.duncancowles.com