In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.

Q: uncompromising french director robert bresson 's " lancelot of the lake " achieves the exact opposite effect of sir thomas malory 's " morte darthur .
" instead of enshrining the legend of king arthur and his knights of the round table , it dethrones them by revealing arthur as a weak , ineffectual leader and the knights as a group of jealous , bickering men who failed to live up to the legends prescribed to them .
chivalry has no place in " lancelot of the lake , " except as that of a dying ideal .
bresson begins his tale as the knights of the round table are returning , decimated , after failing merlin 's command to retrieve the holy grail , the mystical cup that was filled with christ 's blood .
bresson immediately gives us his impression of the essential meaning of the grail quest : bloodshed and failure .
the opening sequence is a series of clumsy , disjointed fights amongst anonymous knights -- a head is hacked off , a stomach is impaled , a skull is split open , skeletal remains hang from trees , and
burning bodies smolder in the ruins of a flaming house .
since the film starts with camelot in near - ruin , and takes only an hour and a half to arrive at its inevitable conclusion , it does n't carry the grand , tragic resonance of other arthurian films .
we never get to see camelot at the peak of its power , therefore there is no real downfall to witness .
but , then again , it is not the name of camelot that is evoked in the title of the film .
rather , it is lancelot , and bresson is more interested in the internal battle within his heart , than the external downfall of a kingdom .
lancelot has always been a tragic figure in the arthurian tales , and bresson uses him as the central figure to explore the battle between the spirit and the flesh .
the greatest of all knights , he was flawed only in his love for arthur 's wife , queen guinevere , and it was that illicit affair that eventually caused the downfall of camelot .
even when lancelot attempts to end the affair with guinevere ( laura duke condominas ) , he only finds himself falling back into her arms against his better judgment .
he knows it means the destruction of the idealized kingdom , but he is powerless in his passion .
when sir mordred ( patrick bernhard ) accuses lancelot of the affair , other knights , including sir gawain ( humbert balsan ) spring to lancelot 's defense .
it is this battle within the knights that is the eventual undoing of the round table ; the flesh wins out over the spirit , and the consequences are dire .
bresson is an intensely personal filmmaker most interested in the interiors of men 's hearts and minds .
" lancelot of the lake " is filled with his particular trademarks : a stripped - down , minimalist style , flat , expressionless dialogue , and a grand use of natural sounds in place of music .
he uses background music only twice in the film , during an opening narration segment and during the opening credits .
the music here is a heavy drumbeat and accompanying bagpipes , but the rest of the film is scored with natural sounds that punctuate the film 's thematic elements : the incessant clanking and creaking of heavy armor , the neighing of horses , the rhythm of hooves beating down dirt roads , and the natural chirping and whispering of the forest .
like most of his other films , bresson employed nonprofessional actors who recite the dialogue in emotionless , flat voices .
all the actors he used in " lancelot of the lake " had never acted before , and with the exception of patrick bernhard , they never acted again .
never once do they raise their voices or put any emphasis on a given word .
instead of using vocal inflection , bresson strove to create emotion through images .
in some ways , this technique works ; in other ways , it does n't .
the final montage of arthur 's men battling each other is quite marvelous , and the final image of the knights in shining armor reduced to a literal scrap - pile sums up the entire film in one moment .
however , other times bresson 's uncompromising methods are distracting and questionable .
for instance , during an important jousting contest , bresson films the majority of the action so that the only things visible are the horses ' legs .
he does this repeatedly , opening each shot with the same few notes from a bagpipe and the raising of a different flag .
while there might be symbolic value in this , the resulting experience of watching it can be bothersome .
nevertheless , " lancelot of the lake " is a fascinating cinematic experience boldly made by a master filmmaker .
bresson 's style may not be for everyone , but one has to respect his strength as an artist .
by re - evaluating the arthurian legends and making them his own
, he turns " lancelot of the lake " into something rare in modern cinema : a truly personal film .

A: P
****
Q: ` run lola run ' , a german import that gained a stellar reputation at the sundance film festival , is a dazzling and kinetic film that deals with the subjects of fate and chance .
for a berserk and retroactive 81 minutes of non - stop movement , we follow a fiery - haired heroine named lola ( franka potente ) as she sprints to save her boyfriend from the clutches of drug dealers .
lola has roughly twenty minutes to somehow retrieve 100 , 000 marks in time to save manni ( moritz bleibtreu ) from being killed by the dealer .
but , in something of a pseudo- ` groundhog day ' approach , director tom tykwer gives lola three separate chances to best navigate her way toward the goal .
in these trio of episodes , we gradually learn the unique effects of fate , for even if tiny changes are made in lola 's journey , the future can be seriously altered .
` run lola run ' is an experience like ` fight club ' or ` the matrix ' , in that each film takes you through a super - charged wormhole of bending reality in surreal and exciting ways .
in addition , all three movies have a visual style that separates them from the rest of the pack .
` lola ' is no exception , with stylish quick - flash camera work and cinematography that serves as scintillating eye candy from the get - go .
tykwer 's world is a landscape of mood and color , with brilliant shades of red and pink ( including lola 's fiery hair ) used as effective symbolism throughout .
with it 's visual style and mind - blowing pace , ` run lola run '
is one of the more invigorating movies of the year .
even more so when considering the fact it 's all stuffed rather nonchalantly into an 81-minute time period .
as a heroine , potente does little more than run wildly through the streets ( as the title suggests ) , but
she has a certain flair and charisma .
her exemplary running form made me wonder if she is actually a track star .
meanwhile , bleibtreu does an equally fantastic job of bringing the dopey but passionate manni to life .
both actors perform beyond the call of duty .
the dazzling fun comes from predicting what each episode holds in store for lola , and the outcome is ultimately rewarding - several twists and turns are unique and unexpected .
the other characters lola runs into ( both purposely and inadvertently ) include her banker father ( herbert kraup ) and a friendly security guard ( armin rohde ) , but aside from the two leads , no one has more than a few minutes of screen time .
additional stars that could n't possibly be ignored are cinematographer frank griebe and editor mathilde bonnefroy , who are both responsible for the film 's eye - catching visual elegance .
` run lola run ' is subtitled , so be prepared to meet the challenge of reading the lightning - fast dialogue - occasional sections of it are especially fast .
this is only one of the minor chores involved in watching .
the other is the sense that we never get to really recognize who the real people are in this hyperactive situation .
most are just chess pieces in tykwer 's elaborate game of visual presentation , and he never really makes a significant move with any .
but , the average viewer is likely to be
so absorbed in the action that few will realize the lack of potency in a few elements of the screenplay .
a few petty gripes aside , this film is a wild , exhilarating ride that turns maniacally on its wheel of originality .
most people believe foreign films are mainly boring , talky character studies .
perhaps ` run lola run ' will recharge their batteries .
not only does this film offer insight into some intriguing questions of fate and destiny , it also delivers a white - knuckle visual rollercoaster ride of overwhelming audacity .
like how the experience must have been for the persistent title character , ` run lola run ' is exhausting .

A: P
****
Q: alchemy is steeped in shades of blue .
kieslowski 's blue , that is .
with its examination of death , isolation , character restoration , and recovery from loss , suzanne myers ' new independent film echoes the polish director 's internationally - acclaimed 1993 release .
language aside , the principal difference between the films is that , while kieslowski took great pains to draw us into the main character 's world , alchemy keeps its viewers at arm 's length .
as a result , while we 're able to appreciate the film 's intellectual tapestry , it is emotionally distant .
alchemy is divided into three chapters : " charity " , " faith " , and " hope " .
while there are common themes and story elements running through all three , the single constant is the main character , a sculptor / russian translator named louisa ( rya kihlstedt ) .
when the film opens , she 's living with her painter boyfriend , whom she believes to be cheating on her .
following his sudden death in an automobile accident , louisa 's life is thrown into turmoil .
events swirls around her , and she ca n't find a source of stability .
in her quest to make sense out of her loss , she befriends her late boyfriend 's mistress , visits her ill sister , and , eventually , abandons her old life by joining a " back - to- nature " cult .
alchemy successfully explores a variety of compelling issues .
in addition to asking the basic question of how a person should cope with the unexpected death of a loved one , it probes beneath the surface of concepts like the importance of faith in the healing process , the meaning of love , and the nature of art .
does personality restoration come through interacting with others or escaping from the familiar ?
are artistic epiphanies the result of focused solitude or of living life , with all of its various distractions , to the fullest ?
myers ' challenge is to make these subjects , art film staples , engrossing in a new context .
through louisa 's struggles , she succeeds .
while alchemy is n't always emotionally appealing , it never loses its fascination .
even when we 're not connecting with louisa , who is often more of a locus for ideas than a fully - developed personality , there 's enough material on - screen to hold our attention .
the cinematography is stunning .
city scenes are tinted with blue , adding a cold , bleak dimension to the film 's early portions .
later , when louisa reaches the " wilderness " , we 're treated to a dazzling array of autumnal splendor -- brightly - colored leaves in the trees and on the ground .
it 's a startling - but - effective visual contrast that emphasizes the changes taking place in louisa 's life as she travels the road back to emotional stability .
the title refers to the practice of a group of mystical faith- healers who use " alchemy " to provide for the needs of the body and soul .
and , although louisa partakes of their peculiar brand of medicine , it 's ultimately love and companionship , not alchemy , that brings solace .
her pain is assuaged only when she lets go of the belief that the inherent safety of being alone is life 's ultimate goal .
even though louisa 's final transformation lacks the impact it could have possessed
had she been a more vital character , it 's still an intriguing and enlightening process to watch
.
alchemy is n't pure magic , but , especially during its best moments , it 's close .

A:
P
****