Review of Revolver (2005) by Johnslegers — 03 Jan 2016

Magnolia, Mr Nobody, Cashback, Land of the Blind, Eden Log, Watchmen, Requiem For A Dream and Black Snake Moan are some of the movies that made the greatest impression on me until quite recently.

Revolver blew them all away. Revolver is beyond without comparison the deepest movie I've ever seen. It is all about exploring what Freud called the "id" aka the reptilian brain aka instinct. It explores the nature of fear, pain, rage, compassion and trust and teaches us how important it is to allow the right aspects of your "id" to dominate your self to find inner balance and happiness.

Unfortunately Ritchie goes way over most people's heads with that message, which is why it doesn't get nearly the attention it deserves. I know it's a cliché and I'm going to get butchered for this, but those who call this movie a pretentious mess are either not intelligent enough to get it or not mature enough to understand the depth and beauty of it.

Technically, this movie was perfect as well. The pacing perfectly accompanied the message of the movie as it gradually unfolded. Repeating themes help the viewer organize his thoughts as the message gets clearer and our understanding of the meaning of these themes becomes richer and more powerful.

While not as rich as Mr Nobody or Cashback from a purely audiovisual perspective, the audiovisual appeal was nevertheless very strong and formed a perfect whole with the message and pacing.

Casting and acting were no less excellent. Each character perfectly filled the role they played. No one felt out of place and Statham was a much better actor than I ever thought he could be.

This is a movie you should see at least twice. Once you really "get" the story, a second viewing makes it a whole new experience that's no less worth watching. But that's only if you get it. Most people just don't get it and won't ever get it...