Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close [DVD]

This film was savaged by the critics on both sides of the Atlantic, but it is actually rather good - not great, but enjoyable, never boring, often moving and certainly an improvement on the somewhat tedious novel. The film script tightens up the plot and although still anachronous, like the book, omits most of the irrelevant back-stories of the grandparents. The film will probably be viewed more favourably in the future. Even though the story is driven by events of "9/11" (the 2001 collapse of the World Trade Centre's twin towers in New York), the film is probably best approached as the story of a young boy who is fearful of the modern world, insecure, obsessive and possibly suffering from a mild form of autism, whose beloved father tries to build up his confidence by organising expeditions for him. After his father dies on 9/11 11-year-old Oskar finds a key together with a cryptic clue (the words "not stop looking" circled on a press-cutting), which he believes will lead him to a final message from his father. Unable to communicate with his grief-stricken mother, Oskar determines to overcome his fear of lifts, bridges, public transport, strangers, etc., in the quest to locate the lock the key fits, guided by the name Black written on the envelope he found it in. By the end of the film Oskar has triumphed over adversity, reconnected with his mother and gained enough confidence to happily use the swings which he refused to sit on at the start, to his father's disappointment, as they were "not safe". This act also leads to him finding his father's last message. The key had nothing to do with the message but the quest lead him to it. One's individual response to the film will probably depend upon whether one is sympathetic to Oskar - who is on screen for some 95% of the time - and his nervous, insecure behaviour, exacerbated by the loss of his father, the only person who seemed to understand him. Otherwise Oskar could be regarded as just an intensely irritating, know-all nerd. The role of Oskar is given a remarkably fine performance by 13-year-old Thomas Horn in his first film. The camerawork of Chris Menges is always imaginative and involving, whether indoors or on location in New York's lesser known environs. The Blu-ray disc version has several interesting extras, including 20 min. on the making of the film, 8 min. about Thomas Horn, and especially a 44 min. featurette on Max von Sydow (Oskar's mute grandfather) with rehearsal sequences and on-location anecdotes.

I was a bit worried about this movie when I read the 1 and 2 star reviews, but I think that most people will agree that this movie is quite good indeed. It is about a boy with possible Asperger's syndrome whose father tragically died in 9/11. Because of the boy's "condition" his relationship with his father was something that pretty much represented his whole world and identity, so when dad dies and he finds a treasure which his dad may (or may not) have left him, he decides to pursue solo an adventure as if he was with dad (to kind of stretch his memory of his father and continue to make saense of the world as he did). Now, reviewers called the boy "spoiled". I am sure having Asperger's syndrome and losing one's dad at 10 years old does not qualify a child as "spoiled". Annoying - kind of, but what I saw was very well acted anguish, deep sentiments of fear and overwhelming agony at human interactions. The movie is well acted by all, and the plot, while embarassingly twisted, is not in any way ridiculous, life is full of little coincidences. So overall a great movie, but depressing as anything.

It is a very good film. The impression I got was that Tom Hanks wanted there to be film about the Al-Qaeda terrorist attack on the New York Twin Towers on 11 September 2001 with him in it, and, I think, it is a very good one. The acting is superb throughout, with the stand-out performance going to the young lad aged around 12 called Oskar Schell in the film and Thomas Horn in real life. Oskar Schell's Dad is Tom Hanks. Tom Hanks dies in the Twin Towers and his aspergers/autistic son Oskar finds a key in his Dad's possessions that prompts him to go on a search throughout New York looking for the lock that the key belongs to. The constant backdrop is the attack on the Twin Towers, with recorded messages of Tom Hanks desperately trying to say a few last words to his son before he dies. The start of the film was slow, but the fact that it starred Tom Hanks, (or at least it did at the start), kept me wanting to continue to watch. There came a point where the film gripped me and held me spellbound to the end, not least because of the qualithy of the acting, (it is an all-star cast), but I have my doubts that people are going to want to watch it multiple times, hence the four stars and not five.

I saw the movie just 2 days ago and I completely fell in love with it. I read the book as well and I would say that the movie is even better. It's such a great story and Thomas Horn acts the leading role like he has never done anything else in his life. What I like the most about this movie is its unusualness. The story doesn't end like everyone would expect it does after seeing the first 30 minutes. All the time you think oh yeah he will find the lock and that's it but then the movie turns around and something happens what nobody would ever thought of. At last I would say that everyone who didn't see the movie yet should do it now cause you'll really miss something.

Anybody who remembers the awful tragedy of 9/11 cannot fail to be moved by this film and I think it portrays what life must have been like for many children and adult partners as they sought and still seek to come to terms with that event and the loss of a loved one. The cast where great and there was real feeling in the way they acted which brought you into the situation whether you wanted to be there or not. A film well worth watching, if only to remind us just how fragile our time and relationship are, and it reminds us that what we leave behind are memories for others to cherish and respond to.

I bought this due to the fact that I'm a massive Hanks and Bullock fan, and with never seeing them in one film together I thought it should be good. Despite naming both of these actors on the front cover they are actually in the film for a very short amount of time. Hanks about ten minutes, Bullock around 20 minutes. The main actor throughout the film is the young boy, who, in fairness, does a marvelous job. Story is okay, drags a bit, but by the end, it gets better. Not for one for Hanks or Bullock purists.

This film was great, I first saw it in the uni cinema and knew that I had to own it on BluRay - I bought the triple play, that way my mum could have the dvd version! It was well worth it, it looks and sounds incredible! More about the film, however, it is really touching and moving, well thought out and filmed and the acting is, in a word, superb! I'm not going to put any spoilers in, but if you want a film that takes a really different look at the impact on people from 9/11 then this is it! It brought me to tears! Awesome! 10/10!!

This is a hard film to review, its main characters are a Father / Mother / Strange Son, dynamic. The son is a Mr. Spock type character ( it's logical Jim ), half human, half machine, who is set hurtling on a task to find the lock to a mysterious key, the ending is open to interpretation, but I felt that through his loving, kind and sensitive father's demise, learns that although he is devastated most everyone has a story of suffering to tell, and that he is not alone in his grief. On the path of his adventure he meets up with his very damaged and traumatised Granpa, and that via his fathers legacy starts to be able to feel and handle natural human emotion,and is becoming less logical and mechanical, even beginning to relate to his mothers suffering, grief and aloneness. The story is not about the ' key ' that is just a catalyst, but is about a journey of discovery into the human condition, and learning to respect each others lives. Lovely story...

Críticas malisimas!!pero yo la vi por pura curiosidad al ser una de las películas nominadas al Oscar en 2011 y la verdad es que me gustó mucho!!ya se que esta no es una página de críticos!!así que al grano!!el audio es bueno y el video también!!llego en el plazo acordado y me encanta tenerla en mi colección!!recomendable!!

Extremely Loud Incredibly Close è un magistrale adattamento cinematografico dell'omonimo romanzo di Jonathan Safran Foer, eccellentemente interpretato da Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, dal giovanissimo e brillante Thomas Horn, insieme alla straordinaria partecipazione, nonostante l'età, di Max von Sydow. Giustamente candidato come Miglior Film agli Oscar 2012, si tratta di un film d'impatto, emotivamente coinvolgente e che indaga, mettendole sotto la lente di ingrandimento, tematiche delicate come i rapporti familiari e la ricerca di se stessi e del proprio 'posto nel mondo'. L'edizione blu-ray, sono felice di dirlo, è straordinaria: sia l'audio che i sottotitoli sono in diverse lingue e la qualità video è superlativa. I contenuti extra sono davvero interessantissimi: troviamo un "making of" del film, un mini-documentario sul personaggio di Max von Sydow (girato dal figlio), una serie di interviste che si concentrano sul personaggio di Oskar Schell (il protagonista) ed infine un approfondimento sul legame tra il film e l'attentato dell'11 settembre, molto più 'concreto' di quanto si possa immaginare (vi consiglio assolutamente la visione di questo extra!). Voto all'edizione blu-ray: 10

Très beau film et dvd neuf

I didn’t have any expectations for this film. I got the sense from the trailer that it was going to be a drama and potentially a “tear jerker.” I always appreciate a little mystery – and was intrigued by the mystery of the key. I’m not sure if this film is considered a ‘coming of age’ film. But the boy does come to grips with some adult experiences and emotions. I thought the cast was great – but I felt some of the scenes were over-acted – as though it was TRYING to be an epic emotional drama. For me, those few scenes seem to distract from the natural flow of the film. But I guess that’s what you get when you cast big names. Otherwise – this film is touching to watch. The five star rating is for the condition of the product. No problems with the case, disc, or shipping of the product.

Der Film ist wunderschön, aber er geht psychisch stark an die Substanzen. (Man sollte Taschentücher parat haben) Ich habe den 11. September nicht in New York miterlebt, nur wenn ich mir vorstelle, dass den jemand schaut, der da dabei war… Das triggert sicher ganz schön, weil es eben sehr auf die Gefühlsebene aufgelegt ist. Aber er ist dennoch wunderschön. Ich habe noch nie einen so genialen Film gesehen, in dem so viel Lebensweisheit steckt. Ich habe geweint, als ich "Extrem laut und unglaublich nah" zum ersten Mal gesehen habe. Diese kleinen Details sind wunderschön angelegt und ausgedacht. Die Mutter, die Oskar trotz allem die ganze Zeit über begleitet hat, der Großvater, der nun taub ist und seine ganz eigene Geschichte vorweist und letztendlich der Junge an sich, der so viele Ängste in sich trägt und durch diese Expedition alles überwindet, was ihn zuvor gehemmt hat. Als Oskar diese kleine Nachricht in der Schaukel gefunden hat, kamen mir erneut die Tränen. Hat ein bisschen etwas von „PS ich liebe dich“, ist aber trotzdem total anders. Im Prinzip werden viele kleine Geschichten dargestellt, die letztendlich zu einem ganzen Münden und neben Hoffnung auch Selbstvertrauen und Zuversicht vermitteln sollen. Oskar ist ein äußerst intelligenter Junge, der mit seinem Vater gern Expeditionen nachspielt. Letzter verfolgt hierbei das Ziel den schlauen, aber ängstlichen und zurückhaltenden 12 jährigen für das Leben in der Gesellschaft stark zu machen, indem er ihm kleine Aufgaben verteilt, die ihn zwangsweise mit Menschen konfrontieren. Hierbei muss er alle seine Ängste (u.a das Schaukeln auf einer Schaukel, das Fahren mit öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln überwinden) um die Situation zu meistern. Bei einer Konferenz im World Trade Center stirbt sein geliebter Vater durch die Anschläge des 11. September und für den kleinen Oskar bricht eine Welt zusammen. Nachdem er das Zimmer der Eltern über ein Jahr nicht betreten hat, findet er schließlich eine Vase mit einem Schlüssel, von dem er sich etwas wertvolles erhofft. Auf einem Briefumschlag steht der Name Black. Weil er den Verlust seines Dads kaum erträgt und sich von dem Fund erhofft seinem Vater wieder nah zu sein, beschließt Oskar alle Menschen in ganz New York mit dem Namen Black aufzusuchen. In Verbindung mit diesem Sachverhalt lernt er auch seinen Großvater kennen, der ihn zwischenzeitlich auf der Suche begleitet. Der Film ist extrem emotional, aber auch unglaublich authentisch. Man muss hierbei dazu sagen, dass es den ohnehin sehr emotionalen Jungen, doppelt so schwer trifft, weil er sehr sensibel für all die Dinge ist, die er sieht und hört. Nach einiger Zeit kann man regelrecht mit Oskar mitfühlen. ^ Ein Problem allerdings sehe ich in dem Film: Ich denke nicht, dass es viele in Deutschland lebende Menschen betrifft, aber für die Menschen, die das hautnah mitbekommen haben, finde ich diesen Film etwas zu heftig. Wenn man ein Trauma davongetragen hat, sollte man das besser nicht schauen. Ansonsten ist das Thema sehr gut umgesetzt. Dieser Vorfall wird endlich auch mal aus der Perspektive von Kinderaugen betrachtet. Das ist recht selten, weil Psychologen davon ausgehen, dass Kinder davon noch nicht allzu viel mitbekommen haben. Die Art und Weise mit vielen älteren Medien, die in den Film eingefügt sind, finde ich hervorragend. So wird gerade Teenagern, die den Film sehen eine ganz andere Perspektive vermittelt. Nämlich das es neben sozialen Netzwerken auch noch andere Dinge gibt, mit denen man die Freizeit interessant gestalten kann. Der Film ist sehr gelungen. Kann ich nur empfehlen.