Great Ending to a Slow Convoluted Slog

Rating: 6/10 (26 March 2012)

I know I am in the minority regarding this widely acclaimed film, but after reading a review of "In A Better World" saying how terrible it was compared to this and the other nominated foreign films of 2010, I was expecting this film to be much better than I felt it actually is. Let me say that I realize it is ambitious and well acted, but it is done in a manner that I find rather annoying, that is where a mystery requires the principals to find something in the past, and everyone they encounter at first is reluctant to help, and then seems to be able to supply an additional bit of information, which leads to the next encounter. They rarely encounter dead ends, and their mother escapes one treacherous moment after another, much like Indiana Jones, or the Bourne films, which I find unlikely and ultimately empty at the core. I know those films are very popular, so if you like those, you will probably like this slower paced one. However, the ending was indeed different, and quite interesting. Had the ending been predictable from the start I would have rated this a 2 or 3, as it also kept switching from the present to flashbacks without the viewer realizing which it was, making the first half of the film hard to follow. I admit I prefer movies that try to tell a straightforward story, and if they use flashbacks, it is fine if they signal it someway. For me, "In a Better World" was the masterpiece. This was just a well made overlong formulaic indie with a terrific ending which almost made the trip worthwhile, but not quite.