Colonia

Using cheap clichés from Hollywood genre movies, Colonia is silly in places, but at the same time, it has a solid romantic storyline and, in contrast to that storyline, can also be fascinatingly bizarre (the microworld of the colony, its characters and internal laws). Viewers are frightened by the cruelty of domination and the helplessness of the victims, and the tension’s so great that they are kept on their toes the entire time. Michael Nyqvist’s bad guy is truly abominable. (03/21/2016)

If I were to approach Colonia as a so-called serious film that tries to analyze the political situation in Chile after Pinochet's coup and also examines the functioning of closed religious communities, I would have to unconditionally give it a negative rating, and quite radically. Fortunately, being well-informed, I have always perceived Colonia as an adventurous thriller with a strong romantic subplot that perceives the political situation after the military coup only as a backdrop for its storytelling. Within the genre, it is certainly above average. The film is well cast, especially Michael Nyqvist as the sect leader, who acts appropriately corrupted and demonic. He truly relishes the role. Of course, weaknesses and flaws can be found in the screenplay, especially in the last ten minutes when Colonia imitates the finale of Argo, which comes across rather comically. While in Argo, you felt like the Ayatollahs were breathing down your neck, while here the ending seems somewhat naive. However, the main thing is that, practically throughout the film, it maintains its pace and tension in line with what it wants to be. It simply entertains. I thus have no reason to give it less than 4 stars and a 75% overall impression. (05/18/2016)

Emma Watson as a woman who goes to rescue her unionist husband in a "summer camp" where bigotry, violence and the tough Michael Nyqvist (who was excellent here) run rampant. My initial fear of a boring war-themed film about communists, Nazis and other topics that go beyond me was eventually replaced by an interest in finding out what was actually going on in the camp. Quite a harsh atmosphere, feelings of hopelessness and injustice, and a nerve-wracking finale where you just root for the main characters. In all respects an excellent film and a huge must see surprise. (01/23/2020)

I ignored the film at first and watched it more out of necessity and was pleasantly surprised. I certainly wouldn't be put off by the drama/romantic/historical genres like I was initially, the premise alone is interesting and intriguing enough to fall reliably into the thriller genre. While the film is not as gritty and breathtaking as the description would suggest, the suspense and atmosphere paces perfectly, keeping the viewer concerned for the main characters, who are the likeable Emma Watson and Daniel Brühl. Also worth mentioning is the sleazy Michael Nyqvist, whom you will hate from the first moment. If you like films about camps with a strange regime crossed with a fanatical religious sect you will be satisfied. Story 7/10, Atmosphere 8/10, Gore 1/10, Visuals 7/10, Action 5/10, Suspense 7/10,Humor 5/10. Entertainment 7/10. 75% (05/11/2016)

It isn’t always necessary, but in the case of this movie, I strongly recommend reading the entire summary and taking in every word of it first, so that you know what you are getting into. It will help a lot with the movie itself, which just puts the viewer into the middle of the action, and they don’t have time to find their feet. It puts you into the middle of the action so uncompromisingly that the only thing you can focus on is Daniel Brühl and Emma Watson. Well, and they showed how important members of European cinema they are, because I was completely blown away by their characters. But the whole movie isn’t only about their characters, it is mainly about the whole story, which you probably wouldn’t believe actually happened in the 1970s in Chile. But, as they say, anything is possible on our planet and so I watched with horror the lawlessness our world had to witness. What is funny is the fact that even though the world knew about it, nobody really fought against it. Again, the rule saying anything that happens in a particular state stays in the particular state applies. After a long time a very high-quality European movie that stretches out of the borders of Europe with its story and also actors. Even Michael Nyqvist had fun with his character… You still don’t find it strange that the Germans are behind a story like this, again? (05/25/2016)