Claudio Carvalho

25 May 2012

The Awareness of Life

In New York, the middle-class Veronika Deklava (Sarah Michelle Gellar)is a twenty and something year-old beautiful woman with a good job anda nice apartment. However, the feeling of emptiness of her pessimistview of life leads her to commit suicide with an overdose of pills. Shefails in her intent and two weeks later she leaves the coma and awakesin a psychiatric institution directed by the unorthodox Dr. Blake(David Thewlis). She is informed that her OD injured her heartprovoking an aneurysm and she has only a few weeks of life. Along thedays, Veronika gets closer to the catatonic Edward (Jonathan Tucker),who was left in the institution many years ago. They feel attracted foreach other and Veronika discovers the meaning of life again; theyescape from the institution and decide to enjoy the miracle of each newday together. The dramatic "Veronika Decides to Die" is based on the best-seller ofBrazilian writer Paulo Coelho and has a magnificent performance ofSarah Michelle Gellar in the role of a suicidal young woman. Hercomplex character becomes aware of the simple things that make life sowonderful only after finding the meaning of love. The screenplay hasgreat lines and discusses good points like the definition of insanityor the meaning of life. The cinematography and the stylish music scoreare very beautiful. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Veronika Decide Morrer" ("Veronika Decides to Die")

ted00043

24 May 2012

Film Art

The story centers on Veronika, a woman in her mid twenties who appearsto have everything: good looks, good job and a great life ahead of her.Yet she decides to end her own life. She is unsuccessful and awakens ina mental hospital where she learns that she a short time to live.However in the hospital she meets people who are only 'insane' becausethey don't always follow society's rules. With little left to lose,Veronika embarks on a journey on which she frees herself to experiencerelationships and emotions and ultimately discovers what it means tolive.I Can't Help It. This Is Truly The Best Drama Movie I Have Seen To Date(That Can Be Argued But Thats My Opinion). The Character DevelopmentWith Veronika Is Fantastic And I Am Not Even Close To Kidding. The MainReason This Film Appealed To Me Is That I Have Been Through DepressionAnd If I Had To Choose A Stabbing Or Depression I'd Choose TheStabbing, It Was A Long Time Ago But That Is Not Something You Forget.I Was Also Pleasantly Surprised To See David Thewlis In A Movie That IsGood (I REALLY Hate Harry Potter). This Is Also Proof That There AreStill Good Movies Out There Its Just None Of Its Popular Anymore. IWill Also Say I Have Never Read The Book But Its One That I Will Make ANote Of To Read. I Also Liked The Twist That Veronika Was Fine, It WasThe One Way That This Movie Could've Ended With Her Discovering What ItMeans To Live. I Nearly Did Cry When Edward Thought She Was Dead.Overall I Highly Recommend This Even If Your Not The Biggest Fan OfDrama Movies - I'm Not And I Loved This - Because This Is Truly One OfThe Best Movies Of 2009.

23 May 2012

superb film YES it DOES play on American and European BD players

This excellent movie and Swedish BD does play on both American and European BD players. The extras will not play on American players but the MAIN FEATURE does.When the disc opens you get a choice of the four scandi languages select any. The film willactivate. Once the film starts you can use the POP UP to turn off the subtitles.

sampadmania

23 May 2012

it is much different from the novel itself, i must confess i enjoyed the novel much more than watching this movie.

it is much different from the novel itself, i must confess i enjoyedthe novel much more than watching this movie. there were some mistakesand some misunderstandings audience may occur during watching, 1-veronica lived in different place 2- she was never married before. 3-she never saw an old woman walking pass the street while she was dyinginstead she saw a young man smiling at her, and she smiled back then hewaved at her. 4- schizophrenic boy named Edward used to talk with thatlawyer, but never in public. 5- she had some serious heart attacks byher pills but never mentioned. 6- when they wanted to start treatmenton Edward they did it by electric shock which makes him lose hismemory, but he could remember Veronica anyway.

John F.

18 May 2012

On the spot

I watched this movie last night, being an avid reader of Paulo Coelho'sBooks. This really captures the best of the book.It'd be extremely hard to put it all in, specially because knowing theway the author describes it so well.The actors really play their roles, i enjoyed the most, Dr. Blake andVeronika.The parents weren't as good as they should be given the small role theyhad.If you are a fan of the book, watch it, you won't be disappointed.Watch it even if you never the book.I really hope the next book to be adapted is Rio Piedra.

paul david

18 May 2012

Finally A Paolo Coelho novel makes it to the movie screen!

Clearly I am not the only Paolo Coelho fan and we have all been waitinga while for one of his books to make it to the big movie screen. wow!Wouldn't have chosen this as the first and if I recall from the book,the story is set in slovenia or slovakia or somewhere like that - whyoh why is the story moved to New York and USA? The film is excellentand an emotional roller-coaster though I really don't think there isenougjh chemistry in the film between Veronika and Edward which was theheart of the story in the book.Almost a Twlight new Moon re-written.Sarah Michelle Gellar is definitely sensational in the lead role asVeronika and nobody, above nobody, should miss seeing this film. Coelhois one of the words most sensitive and interpretative writers of humanemotions and thinks film does all the soul-searching for you.Not a long film but it didn't need to be. I was so thrilled to watch itand I am looking forward to more of P C making it!

collipal-1

16 May 2012

Disappointing and boring

Due to some positive commentaries I read about the film VeronikaDecides to Die, I thought that I was finally going to see SarahMichelle Gellar in a good film which would exploit her talent as anactress.Aside from the TV series Buffy, The Vampire Slayer, her talenthas been wasted in many films, specially in The Grudge and SuburbanGirl, where her characters were so poorly written that she could notmake them credible.And even though Veronika Decides to Die ended upbeing a disappointment, Gellar could bring a performance which exhibitsthe emotional intensity and dramatic force she showed in the bestepisodes from Buffy, The Vampire Slayer.In summary, we are talkingabout a solid performance in a very mediocre movie.I am not a fan of author Paulo Coelho, nor I have read his bookVeronika Decide Morrer (from which this film is based on), but Iappreciate the elegant prose and the honest narrative "voice" from hisbooks (at least the ones I have read).So, I dare to speculate that thementioned book must have been richer and more complex than thissimplistic film adaptation, which is full of clichéd dialogs,pretentious "artistic" interludes and moral lessons which border thefarce ("we are all crazy").Another problem are the looooong partsdedicated to superfluous characters who enlarge the story withoutcontributing any content.They may were more relevant in the book, butin the film, they are one of the main things which make itboring.Besides, the ending from this movie is insipid.As I mentioned on the first paragraph, I liked Gellar's performance,and I think that David Thewlis also made a good work with his role,since he rescues his generic character with the conviction he shows.Inthe negative side from the cast, we have Jonathan Tucker, who isabsolutely bland and listless in his character; in other words, I didnot find him credible in his role for even one second.In conclusion, Veronika Decides to Die is a weak and mediocre moviewhose good intentions were contaminated by a diffuse and frequentlycloying screenplay which does not reach the dramatic levels it aspiresto.Despite the performances from Gellar and Thewlis, I cannot recommendthis movie, because I found it to be tedious and unsatisfactory.

JC VD

15 May 2012

Simply terrific

It's a movie worth watching b/c it guides you to search your soul inthis crazy world.Kudos to Sarah Michelle Gellar's performance & her agent landing herthis movie. Last time I had the chance to view her performance wasGrudge 2 and wow she became a serious actress in this one.Maybe it's the director dared to tone down to sell our her blond prettygirl image. Instead, giving her a chance to be an actress.Terrific script as it dares to asks us what's the meaning of life,love, reality, ... etc I am as impressed with this script as I was with"He loves me, he loves me not" Terrific music as well. Kudos to theproducer to put out this amazing movie during this time of sci-fi,shock em all, trash comedy, soft porn / comedy Hollywood junk foodmoviesIt deserves Oscar or other serious film award. At least nominations!!!Just to show Americans are not lame and stupid!!!

ltlacey

13 May 2012

Another I Really Am Worthy flick for the thinking masses

First off, I have read quite a bit of Paulo Coelho. His books areintense, personal, and also spiritual, though not as we would think,meaning religious. So when I heard that a movie had been made from oneof his books I was a bit leery. How do you convey all of that inwardretrospection and Being As One in a movie? Well, you really cannot. Butthis is not to say that Gellar (surprise, surprise) did not come acrossas the intense young woman from Coelho's story. But there are certainauthors who come to mind and "Hollywood" gets their mitts on theirwork, and well, disaster is usually the result, and PC is one of them.In this story a young woman, obviously very depressed and who does nothave such a good relationship with her parents, nor herself really,decides to kill herself, but fails. She awakens in an institution onlyto find out that her attempt at killing herself has in fact given her adeath sentence, but now it will be prolonged. What to do? We find innerpeace and meaning. Read the book instead.

sandourana

13 May 2012

exceeds expectations

this is a great movie, it is very touching , and although the topiccould have been very depressing , it just brightens your day . SarahMichelle Gellar does a fantastic job , she is both strong andvulnerable . the other actors are alright although the parents couldhave been a bit more profound and complex. all in all , a simple andslow movie that goes straight to your heart quite unexpectedly . i haveread the book and as usual in movie adaptations a lot has been leftout, however , the movie stands out on its own , and is in nowayovershadowed by the novel . Again , a short but exquisite take on life,on hope,on love and second chances. well worth the watch , it's a moviethat will surprise you and make you shed a tear on the new foundmiracle of life !

Raymond

12 May 2012

It has the style and mood, but not a 100 winner

Haven't read this or any other book from Coelho, but I'm aware he'squite a bestseller.To speak the truth, I'm not a huge fan of the general story. There areso many movies these days where people seemingly living a perfect life,figure out that the life they are living is somehow disappointing afterall, be it for whatever reason. In this movie Veronika goes to extremeswith the subject and decides to die. This is of course a completelydifferent scenario compared to most movies where the characters just gobonkers otherwise. Suicide should never be an option.From the very beginning, you will feel the depression. The whole movieis quite drowsy, like being under sedative medication. The mood issomething derived from Lost in Translation and Virgin Suicides with adream like quality.The mood is the strongest part in the movie, cinematography, acting andmusic are all top notch. The story also is OK, but the script failshere and there. For example I had a bit of trouble figuring out therelationship between Veronika and Edward, what was the attraction otherthan they were both pretty handsome and attractive? The other supporting roles also fall a bit short, even tho the actorsare doing a good job. I would've liked to see more of Melissa Leo's andDavid Thewlis' characters development. Veronikas roommate is also leftin the shadows, even tho she's introduced in a longish scene.I'd say this movie felt more realistic than many other "mental hospitalmovies". It's the distant, lonely and depressing mood that lingers allthe way that makes you feel more than the story tells.Possible spoilers ahead:What makes this movie interesting is the ending. Even tho it's quiteupbeat and ends on a positive note, I kept feeling the same lonelinessall the way until the credits. It could've turned into a really sweetand tacky by the end, but was handled with good subtlety.Could've been a true winner is now a bit shallow due to a somewhatlackluster script.

mydaed

12 May 2012

20 something angst

I found the movie disappointing. What is the movie really telling us?"Live every day like you are going to die?" OK. If I am going to diesoon, I max out my credit cards, rent a Ferrari, eat at the finestrestaurants, have sex with the most beautiful models... Then what? Shejust happens to find a really good looking, in-shape, twenty-somethingguy, who happens to not talk much, an incredible artist, and worshipsher with every cell in his body... hmmmmm... Sounds realistic! (everycollege educated white woman's fantasy).That is until the bills are due, the car is repossessed, and you findout you have an unwanted pregnancy and STD. I don't mean to be a wetblanket, but I wish it contained a little more reality.

kshitij

09 May 2012

How will you interpret the meaning of happiness...?

The first thing: I have not read the novel so this review is purelybased on the what I saw on the screen, indifferent of how its beingadopted from the book. And again Sarah Michelle Gellar scores with herperformance as an innocent girl. I think she was the best suited forthis role. So before discussing the story, which I guess most of you,would be acquainted with I want to talk about the direction which wasthe strength of the movie. The movie is not at all boring andcharacters are well handled .There were given a chance to fit in theirrespective roles. So I liked the acting and conversation between thecharacters very much. But still I can't say that the movie is flawless.As I finished watching the movie I found myself pretty satisfied withacting, story and movie overall. But still I get a feel that somethingwas missing in the movie something that could have put this one indifferent league of top movies, the kind of movies which areaward-worthy. One thing was lesser publicity, but leave that reasonbehind ...truth is maybe I could not digest the whole plot. Let me makemyself clearer and discuss the storyline.Veronica (SMG) is a suicidal girl, she unsuccessfully tried to killherself and was later admitted to a mental institution(kind of) forrecovery. The doctor and other staffs of hospital tried to change hermindset and make her believe that life is worth living. But why shewanted to die? What she was expecting from her life, that she did notget? What happiness exactly meant to her? Was she seeking only love inher life? May be you wont find the proper answers to these questions,but considering the fact that movie is purely based on the novel itwont be appropriate to question the storyline of the movie. So for mewatching this movie was a nice experience.

hugizz145

09 May 2012

Veronika decides to die has amazing performances , but this plot does not go any where

OK , let's see ... after you watch this film you could decide what isbetter , the book or the film , well if somebody has not read the book, i will tell you read it because it is better than the film .... butfilm is not that bad , actually it is a really good film Lets talk about the performances , first we have to say that SarahMichelle Gellar was wonderful , seriously she was shocking , she reallygot into the Veronika's skin , she showed a depressed girl with subtlegestures and strong dialogs ..... i always thought that she isunderrated as an actress and i was right she is ... but i think thatshe is such a talented actress and i think that she deserves an Oscarfor the performance that she did in this film . Melissa Leo wasfabulous as usual .... Erika Christinsen was depressing and cute at thesame time ..... David Thewil was good but not really impressive ....and Jonathan Tucker was a little insipid , i think he did not giveeverything what he had to give.Well , now maybe you are thinking , why does he say that the plot doesnot go any where ??? , well because in fact this is a short story , imean that it does not have a lot to tale .... so i felt that the filmprolongs a lot the end . But it has a beautiful messages : "live every moment in the best waypossible" and "the life is a miracle so do not waste it" . And it is asa self-help film .Now we have to talk about the characters , well you can see how theygrow up , and how they find their life purposes .... When i waswatching i film i was really impressed of how they changed theirpersonalities , they taught me that happiness can be everywhere , inevery time , they inspired me .My conclusion is that it is a film that has to be seen , and that it isone of the best films of the year ..... it gives you a life lesson andit is the most wonderful thing of the whole film , it gave me a lifelesson.

www.theworstseats.co.uk

09 May 2012

Enjoyable, but not brilliant

2008's emotional bladder infection Twilight was created as a directresult of TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar waspunished for her part in this with lead roles in both The Grudge andScooby-Doo franchises. Now, freshly repentant and having reconciledwith the film industry, she has returned to grace with an admirableperformance in Emily Young's Veronika Decides to Die. Based on the Paulo Coelho novel of the same name (in English anyway)Veronika Decides to Die is the story of a successful young woman,Veronika (played by Gellar) who tries to kill herself after decidingshe is on a path towards a future she doesn't want. Unfortunately forher she fails and falls into a coma for several weeks, before beingshipped to a mental institution where she is told damage incurredduring the suicide bid will kill her within weeks. Coelho's book focused on Veronika's freedom from constriction and hervoyage of self-discovery as she came to terms with her imminent deathand the freedom from responsibility that brought about. Young's filmtakes a more simplistic view and concentrates heavily on her loveaffair with Edward (Jonathan Tucker), a handsome young inmate who wasstruck silent after being involved a car accident. He is brooding andhas pale skin. You don't see him outside during the day very much. Helikes standing in the corner of darkened rooms. He's a wonderfulartist. Aside from similarities to her previous work, Gellar puts in a verystrong performance as Veronika, although a confident supporting castheaded by Tucker as Edward and David Thewlis as the institution head DrBlake help pull the film together during some of the duller moments.As a serious exploration of anomie and the lack of control felt by manymodern city-dwellers over their own lives, or a look at how removingthe fear of death from our daily thoughts frees us, Veronika falls flaton its face. As a quirky little tale of love in a mental institution,it excels.

Pmga80

09 May 2012

My favorite book its now on the screen...

Well this movie almost passed by without me ever noticing it by thelack of publicity at least in my country where the book is known byeveryone....(weird, isn't it?). I don't read much so I can't really"decide" when and if the book is better then the movie ( there's a lotof that kind of discussion with several movies and I usually tend tostay away ) but this is my favorite book of all time so obviously i'msuspicious to talk about it. On top of that I don't like Sarah.It was apoor cast choise, so it's two points behind for the movie; also thefilm skips some very important pieces and moments in thecharacter(s)development. Everything happens way to fast... Still, it'sa little life lesson and tries to prove that love can cureeverything(?).

Combovers

07 May 2012

Most patronising film I have ever seen.

I have actually signed up to IMDb today just so I could write thisreview. Veronika wants to die is a terrible film. I won't go into theridiculous plot synopsis (incase anyone actually does want to watch thefilm), but it is one of the most contrived depictions of mental healthI have ever seen in a contemporary film. The patients in the instituteare the most one dimensional 'crazies'- catatonic, unintelligent,childlike, etc... It's only a film I hear you say, but with it's socalled 'dark' subject matter and shaky hand-held camera I think thisfilm is attempting at some sort of realism. It is anything but.It has the feel of trying - and failing - to be a film somewhat likeRachel Getting Married (Demme, 2008). However the characters lack depthand the plot (and consequently the ending) leaves you feeling cheated.The music that's played throughout the film is unnecessary, itdistracts from the narrative and leaves you with a conscious feeling ofemotional manipulation. There are many other reasons why this film is terrible, but as I am soenraged of wasting hours of my life watching it, I can't even thinkstraight. I just hope someone else reads this review and doesn't makethe same mistake I did.

perkypops

07 May 2012

A very thoughtful look at life and death

Anyone who has experienced someone close committing or attempting tocommit suicide will know how difficult it is to come to terms with nothaving noticed the signs, done something differently, or been lessselfish. And yet this film strips away so many of the myths aboutsuicide it deserves to be watched for taking on us a trip through manysimple truths. From Paulo Coelho's profound story, through EmilyYoung's sensitive direction, and Sarah Michelle Gellar's superblycrafted performance of Veronika, this film is rich in things to spoilyourself with.The story is simple: Veronika decides to die and we are lead on a tripthrough human wonderland from there on. There are no spoilers here,and, no matter what ending you wish for as the characters evolve youare going to be taken on a wonderful waltz around the drawing room asthe onion layers are stripped away.My only criticism is the overuse of soft speech against the soundtrackof some often wonderful piano music, but I forgive the film this faultbecause it has so much more to offer than words. David Thewlis gives avery thoughtful portrayal of the often unorthodox Dr Blake.This isn't perhaps the greatest cinema but it is compelling as a dramaand deserves to be up there with the best movies you can watch.

Dr.Baha Amro

07 May 2012

A Piece of Art

I first read the book when it was released and I thought it deserves tobe a movie because the story is so strong and moving. The only questionI had in mind in my imagination was; who would be Veronica? Then afterthey decided to do the movie, it came to me as a pleasant surprise thatSarah was chosen, I was so happy and I loved her since she did Buffythe Vampire slayer. She is fit to the part and she did a good job. Thismovie is deep and makes you change the way you live your life. It makesyou want to embrace life and use every moment and live each day as ifit is your last. I hope this movie gets what it deserves because itdoes deserve the best.

red_identity

06 May 2012

Compelling and Powerful!

So I finally watched Veronika Decides To Die. Brilliant! I expected an'okay' film after seeing some of the reviews from where it came out,but I honestly loved it. I have not been this moved by a film in a longtime. Having not read the novel from which it is based on, I am surethe film stayed true to the essence and theme of the novel. It is aslow film, sometimes too slow for the 'mainstream' audience, but I wasnever bored. I have seen films with messages like this before, butsomehow Veronika Decides To Die felt authentic, maybe because there hasnot been a film like this in a very long time. The writing is strong,giving Veronika and the supporting characters real backstory and depth.The director, Emily Young, should direct more than she does. She knowshow to really command a scene. There were some flaws, for example theparents felt too one-dimensional, probably because of their smallamount of screen time, and the actors that played them were not thatgreat. However, in the acting department, they were the only flaws.Tremendous acting in this film! The star of the film, Sarah MichelleGellar, really captures an inside look into her character's mind. Ifeel Gellar is strongly underrated as an actress, but I have alwaysfelt that she knows how to play subtle very well. The only otherperformance besides this where she really fleshed out her acting skillswas in the disappointing The Air I Breathe, and the reason she wasignored was probably because the film was less-than-spectacular.However, here she gives her best performance, a tour-de-forceperformance that is quiet and subtle in the way she approaches thematerial. I was very impressed, because never did I think she wascapable of making a performance this strong and subtle, however good Ialways knew she was. Melissa Leo and Erika Christensen also deliverfirst-rate performances. Christensen is charming and amusing, while Leois powerful (no surprise since she was nominated for an Oscar lastyear). David Thewlis and Jonathan Tucker are also great, but to alesser extent. The cinematography was beautiful. The camera-work givesthe film a realistic feel to it, and there are some very beautifulimages in the film. I have also heard complaining about the ending. ILOVED IT! It really made me happy seeing that this film actually had anoptimistic and happy ending, one where Veronika's life is still movingon.Overall, I could not have been more pleased with Veronika Decides ToDie. There is not a reason why anyone should not see this film, unlessthey are too 'bored'. This film also holds one of the greater themesabout life- live it to the fullest, because you never know when you maynot even have the option to.