Oh Oksana Again...

Premonition(dir. Mennan Yapo)
Preposterous. That is one word I would describe this film. It's labelled as a thriller on IMDb and it's not very thrilling. There are scenes that are handled horribly. An example is the scene where the little girl runs through the class. It almost makes sense in the context of how the scene is handled, but the director directs the scene as if a bomb was about to go off. It starts raining, she tells them to get the laundry that's on the line and they're all so tense that it just seems utterly ridiculous. The director attempts to create suspense with a number of scenes that are of relatively mundane activities. It would have made more sense if the director just shot the scenes in a more conventional manner instead of trying to make the audience on the edge of their seat. Sandra Bullock's acting is pretty damn horrible going super hysterical and crazy to Jack Bauer whisperer mode. Julian McMahon's performance is much better because in the beginning of the film, he feels sealed off from his wife and just going through a routine and then the end of the film, he feels open and accepting of his wife's love. There are some warm moments like Sandra Bullock's character telling her daughters that they're beautiful princesses. The plot makes no sense. I could overlook this if the film didn't take itself so seriously. The end also feels false. It's a good message that you should have hope during times of tragedy, but it totally overlooks the fact that she pretty much caused her husband's accident. You could say it was inevitable, but the main narrative drive is whether she can save him or not. It also appears that if her week wasn't chronically jumbled and that she didn't know her husband was going to die, the accident probably would have never occurred. Back to the end, it feels false because she displays no sense of guilt for what happened. I guess it wasn't as bad as I was expecting, but it's still bad.
*1/2 out of ****
Bullet Ballet(dir. Shinya Tsukamoto)
Starts off annoyingly bombastic and ends quiet and serene. When Goda performs what almost seems like a religious ceremony to fuse his soul with his gun, it starts to pick up and adds a sense of depth that was missing in the picture. The end bothers me. I really want to see some of his other work because I thought this was really interesting. It was really good until the end.
*** out of ****
Lilya 4-Ever(dir. Lukas Moodysson)[rewatch]
Utterly beautiful and devastating. I rewatched this relatively quickly. The mother abadoning her child still doesn't feel quite right. I think if the actress didn't cry before leaving, it would be easier to swallow the fact that she essentially abadons her. It would make sense if she reassured her that they'll be together soon and it would be easy to see Lilya waiting around for her mother to contact her. Taken on a more Bressonian level, the film makes more sense. The character's actions can be viewed idiotic by some, but she seems to be driven by an unknown force. She is a vulnerable character and it seems utterly ridiculous when people think she is pretty much a bitch. She usually reacts harshly when someone treats her with a lack of respect. She is also a teenager growing up in an environment she doesn't want to be in, which creates frustration and hostility. It didn't have as powerful of an impact as my first viewing, but it's most likely due to my mood because I'm feeling a little detached right now. Hopefully, it holds up on repeated viewings because I pretty much became obsessed with the film and think it's a masterpiece.
**** out of ****