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      Sombre

      1998 1h 52m Mystery & Thriller List
      Reviews 61% Audience Score 100+ Ratings A serial killer (Marc Barbe) stalks sisters (Elina Lowensohn, Geraldine Voillat) he befriended after their car broke down. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

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      Donald J. Levit ReelTalk Movie Reviews Technique in 'Sombre' becomes annoying rather than extreme or unsettling. Nov 17, 2013 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

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      S R 1001 movies to see before you die. I understand what the goal was, but it was not for me. Nor do I ever want to see it again. RUS. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 09/12/23 Full Review William L Sombre is a dark thriller focusing on serial killer Jean (Marc Barbé) that portrays his rage-filled assault and murder of women as the product of a troubled mind, transitioning from initial consensuality to depraved, brutal strangulation. When I say 'dark', I mean that more in the literal sense - you literally can't see most of what is going on in the two-hour runtime of this film. Everything is a swirling mix of shrouded shapes gasping in darkness, even teh few scenes that take place in locations like an operational department store. Supposedly, you could interpret these creative decisions as a window into the twisted mind of Jean, seeing the world only as a series of indistinct, dehumanized figures that offer the possibility of the thrill that temporarily gives a jolt of emotion (think shades of Jeanne Dielman). But come on, at some point it would be nice to actually see what is happening. A love-it-or-hate-it experimental take on the murder-thriller that likely won't inspire too many new fans for writer-director Philippe Grandrieux. (2/5) Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/25/22 Full Review Audience Member The film making style is boring. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member The title doesn't lie, this is a somber film about a French hombre. Intimate drama about.. a serial killer? It's shot in striking verite, but goes on for too long. "Technique in 'Sombre' becomes annoying rather than extreme or unsettling." ? Donald J. Levit, ReelTalk Movie Reviews Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Looking at other reviews and feedback, the majority of people who didn't like this film didn't like it because it was too disturbing or too graphic. Personally, I didn't like it because it was a piece of shit. In most instances, I will praise a movie for taking its time. Its often refreshing to see a story portrayed without forcing action and dramatic plot points into every scene to keep an audience entertained. It is usually a nice change of pace from the overstimulating and seizure inducing mantra of modern film making. This however borders on coma inducing boredom. I would wager that there are literally 40 minutes of wasted time in this film. So much wasted space that even Werner Hertzog fell asleep. I just can not forgive that blatant of a waste of my time. The plot itself is mundane, unfulfilling, unrelatable, and simply boring. OK, so there's a serial killer. He starts hanging out with some chick. He kinda wants to kill her and kinda doesn't. The end. Throw in a bunch of lackadaisical camera work, stupid indy rock music, unnecessary dance scenes, some full frontal female nudity and you have the formula for a 2 hour movie right? Wrong. Its basically a more graphic version of a Lifetime Network original movie. The acting is wooden as a hollow log. Barbe is more funny than anything. His bumbling and fumbling killings are in no way disturbing, bordering more on hilarious. His murders are more like a 13 year old boy struggling to get a girls bra off the first time. Lowensohn as the female lead is even worse. A total waste in fact. I can't even remember enough about her performance to critique it it was so non-memorable. All other actors are equally terrible. The direction is amateur. Over saturated color, terrible lighting, half-framed shots, and confusing scene cutting combine to give the effect of a movie filmed on a broken hand-held Nikon. The script is nearly non existent. I would be surprised to here that there are more than 200 spoken words of dialogue. Of course that's probably by design when you hear how hokey the existing script is. Whats worse is that it insists upon it's own supposed seriousness and depravity, trying to force a pitch black tone on a film that's ridiculousness and horrible construction give it away 5 minutes in. Not disturbing, not relevant, not anything but a shittily constructed, self insistent, boring-ass piece of shit film. Not even copious amounts of female nudity could muster this above one star. A complete waste of time. Anyone who thinks this is a disturbing film still has a nightlight in their room. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Audience Member It's neither disturbing or graphic as it was reputed to be, Sombre is by far the worst French extremities. It was wonky, boring and confusing. The only reason why people would walk out of the cinema is because of how boring it is. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis A serial killer (Marc Barbe) stalks sisters (Elina Lowensohn, Geraldine Voillat) he befriended after their car broke down.
      Director
      Philippe Grandrieux
      Screenwriter
      Philippe Grandrieux, Pierre Hodgson, Sophie Fillières
      Production Co
      Zélie Productions, Zeie Productions, Arte, Monteurs' Studio, Centre National de la Cinematographie, Procirep, Le Studio Canal +
      Genre
      Mystery & Thriller
      Original Language
      French (Canada)
      Release Date (DVD)
      Apr 17, 2007
      Runtime
      1h 52m