Signs & Wonders

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William L Signs & Wonders has a dubious honor at present, as the least-viewed film to appear on the 1001 Movies to See Before You Die (per Letterboxd); despite its presence on one of the most popular film lists, a nomination for the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and a mention as one of the top ten films of 2000 by Cahiers du Cinema, the film currently has been marked as viewed by a laughable grand total of 253 people. With its early use of digital cameras, director Jonathan Nossiter may have been pushing some technical boundaries, but it looks almost like a period home movie in terms of visual quality, alternating between awkward unstable walking shots and more conventional, professional cinematography, and there's a weird frame rate throughout. The story itself is bizarre - Skarsgård channels his inner suburban housewife by making important life decisions based off coincidental observations (TWO cars in a row with tarps? Better leave my wife and kids), ending up in some weird torrid cuckold affair that becomes a strange thriller as involved characters start acting out violently with questionable motivations. Underneath it all there's some weird geopolitical subplot targeting the realtionship between the former Greek military dictatorship and the US, which really doesn't land well as it's only intermittently hinted at. The performances are decent, the screenplay clearly had some thought put into it with its self-references, and there are certainly individual parts that are enjoyable, but overall it's just a strange story with shaky characters that tries to pass off a different (and rather jarring) visual style as something innovative. Can't imagine where the supposed $5m budget went, apart from Skarsgård's mustard-yellow suit that makes him look as if he should be hanging out with Curious George. (1.5/5) Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 04/23/21 Full Review Audience Member Even though it was critically panned, I can't say that I didn't enjoy this film. There is tremendously good interplay between the leads and heavy good drama. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a film that seems to get more and more interesting the further you get through, but to be honest they lost it at the end, it just doesn't finish properly, I wanted to know more, but guess that's the point. The whole film is also shot very strangely, it's all hand held and filmed from odd angles. So what we have is an art-house film that try's very hard to be good, but fails, the plot is poor, and the whole thing doesn't run smoothly, the film jumps all over the place and it doesn't suit the story. I can tell they have put a lot of passion into this film, but think they have bitten off more than they can chew. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Audience Member An obsessive and somewhat dull businessman, Alec (played by Stellan Skarsgard) embarks upon a destructive affair due to his fascination with symbols and portents. This totally destroys his family and leads to his mental disintegration while all the time he tries to rebuild his crumbling life according to his rather warped sense of world order. This initially seems a fairly straightforward, if unusual, tale of a nervous breakdown and the effects it can have on an individual and those around him but director, Jonathan Nossiter tweaks it into something a bit more surreal and oddball. It is beautifully filmed, most of the action taking place in various parts of Athens and the Greek countryside where the scenery is used to good effect. Clever cinematography enhances Alec's state of mind and keeps the action interesting. The cast is good with Charlotte Rampling playing a strong role as Alec's wife, Marjorie with consummate ease. The movie however is slightly let down by an ending that is perhaps a little too baffling to leave the viewer wholly satisfied. Without giving too much away, I was left not only wondering whodunnit, but whether it had actually been done at all. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/13/23 Full Review Audience Member It starts out evoking one man's descent into mental instability quite well, both the atmosphere and the specifics of his condition--thinking that everything around him symbolizes something of import. What's interesting for the first half is that most of his thoughts on that symbolism turn out to be wrong. However, the film loses focus and becomes a little incomprehensible in its last half, especially the last 30 minutes. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Audience Member A second viewing might be warranted to do justice to all the subtle nuances present in this flick, but mostly I think this psychological drama is just a bit too plodding. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Signs & Wonders

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