Regie:
Alex GarlandDrehbuch:
Alex GarlandKamera:
Rob HardyBesetzung:
Jessie Buckley, Rory Kinnear, Paapa Essiedu, Gayle Rankin, Sonoya Mizuno, Sarah Twomey, Zak Rothera-OxleyStreaming (4)
Inhalte(1)
Nach einem schweren Schicksalsschlag zieht sich Harper (Jessie Buckley) in eine englische Landidylle zurück. Dort hofft sie, einen Ort der Heilung gefunden zu haben. Aber jemand oder etwas aus den umliegenden Wäldern scheint sie zu verfolgen. (filmladen)
Kritiken (9)
Alex Garland ist ein Meister der Horrorspannung. Die erste Szene mit der nackten Figur hinter dem Fenster ist eine Delikatesse. Er entscheidet sich aber auf gar keinen Fall für ein bestimmtes Genre. Seinen Film Men - Was dich sucht, wird dich finden kann man als einen faszinierenden halluzinogenen Trip beschreiben, der voll von Fragen nach Zusammenhängen ist, die aus einer harmonischen Serie von beunruhigenden oder fast sogar grauenhaften Bildern hervorgehen. Ein LSD-Trip, in dem die Hauptheldin irrt und von vernichtenden Gewissensbissen geplagt wird. Von einem tragischen Ereignis erschüttert, welches durch einen Konflikt eines Wesens von der Venus und eines Wesens vom Mars verursacht wurde. Eine seelische Qual, weil sie etwas, was man nicht verstehen kann, nicht versteht. Ich hätte nicht gedacht, dass sich gerade ein Kerl mit diesem Thema in einem schwierigen psychologischen Film auseinandersetzen wird. Als Liebhaber von stimmungsvollen und cineastisch ausgefeilten Albträumen, die es dem Publikum nicht leicht machen, bin ich dafür aber verdammt dankbar. Garland kommt von einem anderen Planeten.
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Ich habe mich wirklich sehr bemüht, den Sinn zu verstehen, was mir letztendlich wahrscheinlich nicht gelungen ist. Das heißt aber nicht, dass ich unzufrieden bin. Im Gegenteil, Men - Was dich sucht, wird dich finden ist einer der Filme, die nicht alles sagen (was für die Zuschauer*innen kein Grund zur Unzufriedenheit ist) und Raum für eigene Gedanken bieten. Eine unglaublich fesselnde Stimmung, die ausgezeichnete Jessie Buckley, der großartige Rory Kinnear (diesen Schauspieler kenne ich nicht besonders gut – ich muss zugeben, dass ich bis zum Ende nicht geahnt habe, wie viele Rollen er eigentlich gespielt hat). Diesen Film werde ich mir in Zukunft gern noch einmal anschauen.
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Die erste Hälfte ist eine brillante Einrichtung für psychologischen Horror und funktioniert visuell, musikalisch und durch den Aufbau der Spannung im gesamten. In der zweiten Hälfte löst sich das alles in lange Monologe, metaphorische Szenen und quälend lange Aufnahmen auf, bei denen man langsam betet, dass das Ende kommt - mit dem Wissen, dass man keine Antwort erhalten wird.
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The first half had me excited as perhaps no other recent film has. The mysterious atmosphere, supported by the perfectly chosen music and the sound and image tricks completely fascinated me and I was looking forward to what Garland would surprise me with next. Unfortunately, from the scene in the church it's just a solo for the main character and one actor in wig changes, and it becomes a very weird thing that goes nowhere. It's just Harper watching various body-horror scenes, and occasionally the parson, who I think us the weakest component of the film, utters some pearl of wisdom, and you get a sense of bewilderment and would-be art that wants so much to tempt your own interpretation, but without anything to grasp on. Alex, you’ve tried to get me drunk with a bun, but I prefer a proper black Guinness. Probably the weakest of the three films Garland has directed so far.
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I went for the horror film of the year, came away rather disappointed with a nicely made oddity. I can't come up with any meaningful or thought-provoking interpretation, and the ones I can think of feel banal. And without any supporting ideas, Men is left with a few creepy scenes and one delicious body horror sequence, though in terms of scares, however, the film is not intense enough for this alone to satisfy me. Judging by the final half hour, when the narrative, still relatively anchored in reality, falls apart, Men obviously wants to be first and foremost a parable, not narrative horror that will thrill and frighten the viewer. And, at least after the first screening, I simply can’t figure out what it wants to say (or rather, I want to believe that it wants to say more than what I actually see in it), and at the same time it didn’t engage me enough to enjoy thinking about it. Definitely the weakest Garland so far, I’m even thinking of knocking it down to two stars.
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Alex Garland (Ex-Machina, Annihilation) tries his hand at folk Horror under the A24 banner and it's properly controversial and only for a fringe audience, but those who like his directorial style might find it to their liking. The story focuses on Jessie Buckley who, after the death of her husband, arrives in a remote village to come up with new ideas, but the magical surroundings and a naked man stalking her from afar give her more nightmares. Garland delivers quite an original mystery oddity full of metaphors, symbols, interesting dialogue, beautiful scenery and unconventional horror. Rory Kinnear is excellent, playing all the male characters in the film and being a proper weirdo and sleazeball (I can't remember a film where one actor played 20 different roles in one film), making Garland stand out again. The first hour is a lot of slow building but once Garland switches into horror mode he conjures up some interesting stunts (the hand ripped in half by a knife is impressive!). The atmosphere is cramped and at times uncomfortable and the final body horror sequence is downright glorious, one that even Cronenberg would not be ashamed of. I immediately thought of The Fly, Alien and the famous Zygote all rolled into one. Garland built the film on the mythology surrounding the Green Man and it's quite similar to the recent Gaia from Africa. Story 4/5. Action 2/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 3/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 4/5. 7/10.
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A challenging film. If you loved Hereditary, Midsommar, Mother !, Us and their like, you should not miss Men. Alex Garland is a seasoned director and his pieces like Ex Machina and Annihilation speak volumes, but I wouldn't have expected him to be able to stand alongside Ari Aster or Jordan Peele and, world wonder, he did and Men is another piece from A24 that is its own and different and yet has so much in common with the aforementioned films. Men is not at all accessible to the average viewer, but the fringe "perverted" audience will squeal with delight. Words can't describe how fantastic the film simply is; from the excellent and colourful visuals alone, to the tons of symbolism and parables, the incredible audio accompaniment, the insanely suspenseful pacing and directorial talent, to the final mindblowing conclusion that smashes the "sort of" down-to-earth story into a twisted rollercoaster ride that doesn't slow down until the end credits. It's not perfect, and it's not for 90% of the audience, but it's damn original, it's its own, it's chilling, and I simply adore this fringe genre, so I can't help but give it full marks.
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If this had been made twelve years ago, I would have taken it as an entry in a contest where Lars von Trier and Alex Garland are competing to see who is the greater cinematic edgelord. At the same time, both films have plenty of reading options, and both are at their best when you ditch the reading and approach them as feverish horror films. At the same time, though, the comparison would come out clearly in favor of Trier, whose contribution is the credible work of a sophisticated person. Garland's got the paintings, he pretty much doesn’t mess around (even if it all feels safely artificial), but I'm a little worried that, for how bizarre it seems, deep down it’s really as banal as I think it is. Plus, that's how I was able to tolerate the hideously high perspective taken by the film's narrative. It would be absolutely ideal if Men turned out to be a prequel to the fourth series of True Detective, returning to the themes and characters from the first series.
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A wonderfully atmospheric allegory on the theme (most likely) of dealing with PTSD and trying to step out of your own shadow. Indeed, it's very suspenseful and audiovisually captivating almost the entire time, it's just that the denouement is somewhat... well, beefy. Don't look for any great complexities, just enjoy the atmosphere and then you might actually quite like it. [60%]
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