This film received its fair share of support from critics and fans alike. However, despite good reviews and a loyal following it is still a vastly underrated film. Michael Almereyda has crafted a film which will have to endure time to receive the appreciation it deserves.
A Dracula-esque modern day myth with subtle humor and shades of Poe this film is truly a work of genius. The story is remarkably tight and the characters around which it revolves are rendered in incredible depth. Wry humor lends to the tale with brilliance. At one point a title card reads: "Transylvania" and to illustrate the location a small boy hops around with a Mickey-Mouse hat on his head. Not quite the wolf-ridden moors you expected, but still...
Elina Löwensohn shines as the title character, it is not every actor who can so elegantly work with dialogue such as this. She delivers with a candor that is almost absent from films of the last few years, the major ones at least. Galaxy Craze shines brightly opposite Martin Donovan. Peter Fonda is perfect as the Van Helsing character. Suzy Amis, Jared Harris, and Karl Geary do not fail to impress.
Look for Jim Denault's lush 35mm cinematography. He deals out light sparingly to accomplish with sheen and brilliance what most cinematographers dream of. An image so seeped in mood that any one still-frame contains such power as to function independently from the whole.
"Nadja" transcends the limitations of its medium to become something that is truly rare in the modern cinema landscape... A work of art.
A Dracula-esque modern day myth with subtle humor and shades of Poe this film is truly a work of genius. The story is remarkably tight and the characters around which it revolves are rendered in incredible depth. Wry humor lends to the tale with brilliance. At one point a title card reads: "Transylvania" and to illustrate the location a small boy hops around with a Mickey-Mouse hat on his head. Not quite the wolf-ridden moors you expected, but still...
Elina Löwensohn shines as the title character, it is not every actor who can so elegantly work with dialogue such as this. She delivers with a candor that is almost absent from films of the last few years, the major ones at least. Galaxy Craze shines brightly opposite Martin Donovan. Peter Fonda is perfect as the Van Helsing character. Suzy Amis, Jared Harris, and Karl Geary do not fail to impress.
Look for Jim Denault's lush 35mm cinematography. He deals out light sparingly to accomplish with sheen and brilliance what most cinematographers dream of. An image so seeped in mood that any one still-frame contains such power as to function independently from the whole.
"Nadja" transcends the limitations of its medium to become something that is truly rare in the modern cinema landscape... A work of art.