Happy End (2017) - A worthy full stop for Haneke's dark oeuvre

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A recording of a loading site for boats make up this mysterious, curiosity-sparking poster for Michael Haneke's Happy End

A young girl moves in with her father and his big family, after her mother has been poisoned. 

 

Happy End is written and directed by great German-born Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke (The Seventh Continent/Der Siebente Kontinent (1989)).

Haneke is back in sober, unsentimental top shape here with this potent drama, which is a continuation of the story of the old man and his daughter who we met in his Amour (2012).

Fantine Harduin (Fanny's Journey/Le Voyage de Fanny (2016)) is brilliant and disturbing as the girl; Jean-Louis Trintignant (Z (1969)) is just as inimitable as the suicidal grandfather. 

The ending loses a bit of the subtlety that otherwise esteems the film: The party is too white, and the racism that is showcased was already outlined in the masterly dog bite scene. - But this cannot overshadow that Happy End is a sublime, though-provoking, relevant film and a very handsome (possible) end for the European master's long career.

 

Related posts:

Michael Haneke: 2012 in films - according to Film Excess
Amour (2012) - Tender love, unseizing death in Haneke's pictures
2007 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

Funny Games (2007) - Haneke recreates his strong critique of movie violence consumption for the American audience 

2005 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 

Top 10: Best drama-thrillers reviewed by Film Excess to date 

2005 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess 
Hidden/Caché (2005) - Haneke's slick, cold surveillance drama-thriller   

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II] 

Time of the Wolf/Le Temps du Loup (2003) - Apocalyptic meanderings by Haneke 

 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

 

Cost: Reportedly 12,034,009 €, approximately 13.3 mil. $

Box office: 2.6 mil. $

= Box office disaster (returned 0.19 times its cost)

[Happy End premiered 22 May (Cannes Film Festival, main competition) and runs 107 minutes At least 21 companies and support bodies cooperated in the financing and making of the film. Shooting took place from July - August 2016 in France and in London, UK. The film opened #35 to a 23k $ first weekend in 3 theaters in North America, where it never attained a higher position although it widened to 20 theaters, grossing 301k $ (11.6 % of the total gross). The film's biggest market was France with 563k $ (21.7 %). 2nd biggest was Netherlands with 337k $ (13 %), and North America was the 3rd biggest. The film lost the Palme d'Or to The Square and was also nominated for 2 European Film awards, among other honors. Haneke seems to have retired after the release of the film. Isabelle Huppert (Mama Weed/La Daronne (2020)) returned in Mrs. Hyde/Madame Hyde (2017); Trintignant returned in The Best Years of a Life/Les Plus Belles Années d'une Vie (2019); and Mathieu Kassovitz (La Haine (1995)) in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017). Happy End is fresh at 70 % with a 6.90/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of Happy End?

The Firemen's Ball/Hoří, Má Panenko (1967) - Forman and Co. slice up communism to hilarious effect in outright masterpiece

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A bodacious young woman removes her dress before a man wiping sweat from his forehead on this Soviet-colored poster for Milos Forman's The Firemen's Ball

The Firemen's Ball centers on a festive ball for volunteer firemen and their wives in a small town in Czechoslovakia at the town hall, where a beauty pageant is attempted to be carried out, as gifts are stolen, and an old man's house burns down.

 

The Firemen's Ball is written by Jaroslav Papusek (Black Peter/Cerný Petr (1964)), Ivan Passer (Silver Bears (1977)) and Czech master filmmaker, co-writer/director Milos Forman (Black Peter), with Václav Sasek (Muka Obraznosti (1990)) contributing story elements. The original title translates to, 'fire, my lady'.

The film is an eminent exhibition of human blunder and stupidity. It is terrifically comical. Here the art of putting acting amateur 'real people' in front of a camera for a feature-length period has one of its most impressive, fantastic results ever: Forman and Co. succeed in lifting a simple premise up to becoming a social-realist allegory about dysfunction and incompetence in a communist-run system, and the portrayal clearly hit its mark.

The Firemen's Ball is Forman's arrival as a master filmmaker. An incredible film you shouldn't miss!

Related posts:

Milos Forman: 2006 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

Goya's Ghosts (2006) - Forman's under-appreciated last major picture  

Top 10: The best biopic movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Top 10: The best big hit movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Amadeus (1984) or, The Fool Genius and his Teacher

Hair (1979) - Reflect on 1960s youth counter-culture in Forman's infectious musical 

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) - Forman's 1970s gold-rimmed classic

 

Roger Ebert presents the film in this 14-minute video

 

Cost: 65k $

Box office: Unknown

= Uncertain - but certainly a box office success of some sort

[The Firemen's Ball was released 15 December (Czechoslovakia) and runs 73 minutes. Forman, Passer and Papusek were not able to concentrate on writing after the success of Loves of a Blonde (1965) and headed to the little town of Vrchlabí for quiet. Here they attended a firemen's ball for the fun of it. According to Forman; "What we saw was such a nightmare that we couldn't stop talking about it. So we abandoned what we were writing on to start this script." Shooting took place in Vrchlabí, Czechoslovakia, now Northern Czech Republic. Most of the actors were amateurs, and many of the local firemen volunteers appeared. The film was highly controversial upon release: The Italian co-producer Carlo Ponti withdrew his support for the film upon seeing it, thereby risking Forman a 10-year prison sentence in Czechoslovakia for "economic damage to the state". Forman drove to Paris and found support from Francois Truffaut, who bought the international distribution rights and saved him. Firemen across Czechoslovakia were also outraged by their portrayal, and Forman toured the country to try to calm them down and describe the film's true aim. It sold 750k tickets in Czechoslovakia before the Soviet invasion of the country in 1968 and subsequent ban. The film was released in North America in a subtitled version and a dubbed version, and was also released in many other Western markets. It was nominated for the Best Foreign Film Oscar, lost to War and Peace from the USSR. Roger Ebert gave it a 4/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. Forman left for America after the film's release, and it impressed Michael Douglas enough to hire him for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975). Forman first returned with Taking Off (1971). The Firemen's Ball is fresh at 91 % with a 7.90/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Firemen's Ball?

The Celebration/Festen (1998) - Vinterberg's charged, stirring Dogme drama masterpiece

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+ 3rd Best Movie of the Year

+ Best Drama of the Year + Breakthrough Actor of the Year: Ulrich Thomsen

Four of the film's leads evocative faces clash in a broken mirror in this stark and intriguing poster for Thomas Vinterberg's The Celebration

Christian is going to his father's 60th birthday celebration on their family's castle hotel. With him he carries two speeches, which are going to change his family forever.

The Celebration is written by Mogens Rukov (Reconstruction (2003)) and its Danish master co-writer/director Thomas Vinterberg (The Hunt/Jagten (2012)), whose 3rd feature it is, as well as his best film overall. It represented a kick in the ass on Danish cinema, Danish cultural centrism and Danish traditions in general, which the film - and us as audiences - invariably laugh at. (It is the first of the so-called Dogme films: Read about some of the wave's specifications below.) The humor in this heavily themed drama is liberating and pivotal, saving The Celebration from becoming a depressing acquaintance.
It is fantastically put together script and editing-wise, impressively shot on a simple Sony Handycam (by cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle (Kursk (2018)).) The Celebration is full of great ideas, which simply work, and great Danish actors who give career-defining performances: Paprika Steen (The Substitute/Vikaren (2007)), Ulrich Thomsen (Centurion (2010)) as Christian, Thomas Bo Larsen (A Second Chance/En Chance Til (2014)), Henning Moritzen (Roser og Persille (1993)), Helle Dolleris (Karla og Jonas (2010)), Trine Dyrholm (Fluerne på Væggen (2005)) and Klaus Bondam (Lykkevej (2003)), who is wonderful as the party's German toastmaster.
The Celebration is funny, gripping and intense, a fiery drama that booms with energy.

Related posts:

 
Thomas Vinterberg: Far from the Madding Crowd (2015) - Vinterberg's plush but grating English adaptation

The Hunt/Jagten (2012) - Vinterberg's strongest film since 1998 is a reversed Celebration  

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2010 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Submarino (2010) - Vinterberg's elegant, downbeat Copenhagen-set social realism drama
Dear Wendy (2004) - Vinterberg and Von Trier's unpopular, gun-themed mega-flop 

1998 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess  

 Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 1.3 mil. $
Box office: 1.6 mil. $ (North America only); gross likely exceeds 5.6 mil. $
= Big hit (likely returned in excess of 4.3 times its cost)
[The Celebration premiered in May (Cannes Film Festival, in competition) and runs 105 minutes. The inspiration for the film was a radio program in which a man told about his experiences coming from an incestuous family. - The man was later revealed to have invented the whole story. Shooting took place in Zealand, Denmark. It was the first film to follow the 1995 Dogme manifesto, which detailed that films should be made according to several rules, barring non-diegetic music, sound editing, elaborate setups and crediting the filmmaker. The film opened #52 to a 50k $ first weekend in 28 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #41, only decreasing in theater number, and grossed 1.6 mil. $. In its production country Denmark the film sold impressive 403k tickets, amassing approximately 4 mil. $. Its performance in other markets is not known. Roger Ebert gave the film a 3/4 star review, translating to two notches harder than this one. The film was Denmark's annual entry for the Oscars, but it was not nominated. It was nominated for a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, won 2/2 Bodil awards (Danish film critics' award), the Jury Prize in Cannes, was nominated for a César award, won 1/3 European Film award nominations, an Independent Spirit award, 7/7 Robert awards (Denmark's Oscar) and many other honors. It has been adapted to the stage. Vinterberg returned with 4 video and TV credits before his theatrical return with little-seen Canadian indie The Third Lie (2000). Thomsen returned in Angel of the Night/Nattens Engel (1998); Larsen in I Wonder Who's Kissing You Now (1998); Moritzen in 4 TV credits before Her i Nærheden (2000); and Dyrholm in A Regular Thing/Kys, Kærlighed og Kroner (1998, short), Taxa (1997-99) and theatrically in In China They Eat Dogs/I Kina Spiser De Hunde (1999). The Celebration is fresh at 92 % with an 8.09/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Celebration?

Long Story Short/Lang Historie Kort (2015) - Charming actors elevate generational, party-centered romcom

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+ Best Box Office Disaster of the Year

In bright feminine colors, the cast and a huge dog stand out on this poster for May el-Toukhy's Long Story Short

We follow a group of close, middle-aged friends through 8 parties over the course of 3 years; their relationships' ups and downs.

Long Story Short is written by Maren Louise Käehne (Shelley (2016)) and co-writer/director May el-Toukhy (White Man's Burden (2003)). It is a romcom made with a sure stylistic touch and a good soundtrack. It works as a tender exposé of the filmmakers' own generation, which is superficial, immature and annoying. What discouraged me most about this was that it made me think that my own generation may be even worse.
The focus on the parties banalizes the issues to some degree, because it implicitly indicates that of the most paramount important in life is socializing with friends, - who don't speak about the pressing problems, (they are solved with divorces and therapy), and where children are treated largely as negative, disturbing elements.
The film still works, because it is made with enthusiasm and energy and a group of lovely actors, who bring Long Story Short to life: Mille Lehfeldt (Talenttyven (2012)), Peter Gantzler (On Thin Ice/Kampen (2013)) and Trine Dyrholm (Nico, 1988 (2017)) are all delightful, in spite of my personal ruminations. 
Long Story Short is a crowdpleaser of the kind which could only come from a woman. But it is a lightweight work.

Related posts:

2015 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED IV]

2015 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

Watch a piece of one of the party sections from the film - the surprise party - in this 2-minute video

Cost: Unknown
Box office: 248k $ (Denmark only)
= Uncertain (but likely a box office disaster)
[Long Story Short was released 7 May (Denmark) and runs 100 minutes. Outside of its production country Denmark, the film was shown at festivals in 3 other countries and released in Hungary, but grosses are not made public. If the film was made on a very modest 1 mil. $ budget, it would count as a box office disaster. It won 1/6 Robert nominations (Denmark's Oscar) and 2/4 Bodil awards (Danish film critics' awards). El-Toukhy returned with The Legacy/Arven (2017, TV-series), Ride Upon the Storm/Herrens Veje (2017, TV-series) and theatrically with Queen of Hearts/Dronningen (2019). Lehfeldt has not returned with any credits since. Jens Albinus (Far from China (2001)) returned in 3 TV projects and a short before he was back on the big screen in A Fortunate Man/Lykke-Per (2018). 426 IMDb users have given Long Story Short a 6.6/10 average rating.]

What do you think of Long Story Short?