Review of Funny Games (1997) by Jonathan L — 12 Aug 2009

Less torturous than I expected, but way more antagonistic. It finds so many interesting ways to screw with your head, and Funny Games kind of laughs at the viewer's expense as it toys with you.

This movie's all about how the Hollywood tends to glamorize violence into something they can cheer for without hesitation. It attempts, without actually showing the violence (except for one amazing scene where the movie pretty much embarrasses the viewer for rooting for a guy getting shot and killed) how it really is: people getting hurt is a miserable chore to watch, and there's quite a lot of it here. One character breaks the fourth wall constantly, sort of the director's voice taunting the audience.

The tension in the first 20 minutes is tremendous. From there on out, it gets really slow and cruel. And while Haneke doesn't see this as a Thriller, some scenes really got my pulse pounding. Misc: John Zorn!, subtle dig at Pulp Fiction, which is probably the perfect type of movie Funny Games attempts to criticize. See it.