timaenot Since some highly rated reviews here state that "Vinyan" is not a horror film, I would like to emphasize that it certainly is. "Vinyan" is in fact not a slasher/splatter movie, but splatter is only a sub-genre of horror. It has all elements of classical horror in the wake of Hitchcock's "Psycho"or Kubrick's "Shining", as there are, mainly, an unsettling plot and a story set around fear which is also evoked in viewers by cinematic means, including suspense. This being said, I encourage all fans of classical horror to watch this: you will not be disappointed, this IS a horror film, and a very good one. There are also reviewers stating that the story is basically realistic and 'could happen in real life'. It will remain an open question if this actually could happen (I personally do not consider it probable), but the fact is that the director does not let it look like a realistic story. "Vinyan" portrays dreams, thoughts and fantasies of the characters, so that it is often impossible to tell them from 'real' events. It can be interpreted as a ghost story or as a psychological story of grief and madness without any supernatural components; both readings are justified by the clever screenplay and directing. The story line is consistent and plausible; the atmosphere is very dense and getting more and more eerie throughout the film; the whole story has a touching emotional depth; and the cinematography is of an exquisite beauty which compares to the most beautiful films I have ever seen in my life. The visuals are really unforgettable in their atmospheric grace. Watch this! It is a piece of very fine cinematic art - art-house, yes, but of a successible kind.

divinours I had low expectations for this movie but was very pleasantly surprised. The slow pace of the storyline allows a gradual build-up of the atmosphere, which kept me interested to the end. This is helped by great set of locations (derelict villages and temples, rotting jungles...) that are masterfully depicted - both vividly and with a dreamlike quality that increases as the movie progresses. The actors are good (Petch Osathanugrah is particularly creepy) but do not overplay their roles, contributing to the dreamlike sensation. As the end draws near, the boundaries of reality, imagination and symbolism dissolve...Most of the negative reviews here seem to come from people expecting a horror/gore movie or comparing Vinyan to Lynch's work. While there are graphic aspects to the movie, very creepy characters and an ending open to interpretation, these comparisons are inadequate. Forget about them and watch Vinyan with an open mind - you might not like it (it is one of its kind and not for everyone) but you won't regret having watched it.

Tim Kidner Seems that many hated this mysterious chiller. Some thought it great, I quite liked it.The premise was a little different to the usual, with added credibility of the tsunami link and thus a genuine, human emotion for the couple to search for their missing child. Such emotion can be justifiably overblown in movies - making psychological issues out of almost anything.Yes, it looked good, very good. The attractive, sexy leads, (Emmanuelle Beart and Rufus Sewell, who still managed to remain mostly believable) the sultry landscapes and the monsoon weather, all adding to a great, eerie atmosphere. That it is compared, albeit only visually, to Apocalypse Now is to its credit, surely. Yes, it is ultimately mumbo- jumbo black magic nonsense but that hardly mattered, this is a moody chiller, not world class drama.The final scenes are not only well done, but pretty chilling, too. Not out and out horror, but ones that make you momentarily stare in numbed disbelief. The whole is greatly helped by a hauntingly atmospheric score by François-Eudes Chanfrault.No, I won't be searching for other films by director Fabrice du Welz but I've seen a lot worse movies in my time and for what it set out to do, was quite good.

barrymalvina Straight away I must say I agree with most comments in the "I hated this movie" category. However, I am writing this review to point out what I think might have been some redeeming features of it until they were totally spoiled by the fantasy elements and the ridiculous ending.Both my wife and myself were first attracted to it as it was classed as a drama on its TV showing (totally wrong, it should have been a fantasy/horror - there were certainly no thrills in it for us, we do sometimes quite like a good thriller - and then we wouldn't have bothered at all). We also thought the plot sounded plausible - a wealthy western couple losing their son in a tsunami, and then the seriously disturbed mother persuading dad to go with her look for him.On watching the film, we thought it went well along these lines, with the boy apparently being spotted on a video of children playing on a river bank, with one of them wearing a red shirt - possible the Manchester United shirt their son was wearing when he was washed away. This video was seen in a screening amongst wealthy patrons of charities organizing relief for the tsunami victims, also very plausible.So off they go, with some very good shots of the scenery and local means of transport, etc. Unfortunately much of it was at night-time, so we saw little of it. Why do film makers do this, or is it the reproduction on a TV screen? Anyway, that was the first put-off for us. Another put-off was the interminable length of many scenes, where nothing else happened (e.g. when the husband rescues his wife from the sea and they were splashing around in the water for far too long) and we were trying to be patient whilst waiting for the scene to change.As events unfolded, and I will not say more to avoid further possible spoilers, the only other redeeming quality for us was the chance that they might find their son, and we watched it through to the end with this hope in mind.I must add one major criticism of the use of the children in the film, on top of everything that has been said in other reviews. Were the film- makers trying to emulate "Lord of the Flies"? I can understand how boys of rich parents in an English prep school can turn into little savages, but the local children in such a disaster, having lost their parents, would not gang up in the forest like this. I think it was very degrading of the people who live in these areas to suggest they would.Googling child abandonment in Burma does not change my view of this film. This child abandonment is due entirely to the military, of which there is no mention. If there had been, and cut out the fantasy, then it would have been far more successful as a drama, albeit fictional.