X
- 2016
- R
- The Criterion Channel
- 1 h 49 m
- 2016
- R
- The Criterion Channel
- 1 h 49 m
Summary An upcoming exhibition celebrating photographer Isabelle Reed(Isabelle Huppert) three years after her untimely death brings her eldest son Jonah (Jesse Eisenberg) back to the family house - forcing him to spend more time with his father Gene (Gabriel Byrne) and withdrawn younger brother Conrad (Devin Druid) than he has in years. With the...
Directed By: Joachim Trier
Written By: Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier
- 2016
- R
- The Criterion Channel
- 1 h 49 m
- 2016
- R
- The Criterion Channel
- 1 h 49 m
Louder Than Bombs
70
7.0
Where to Watch
Summary An upcoming exhibition celebrating photographer Isabelle Reed(Isabelle Huppert) three years after her untimely death brings her eldest son Jonah (Jesse Eisenberg) back to the family house - forcing him to spend more time with his father Gene (Gabriel Byrne) and withdrawn younger brother Conrad (Devin Druid) than he has in years. With the...
Directed By: Joachim Trier
Written By: Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 32 Critic Reviews
70
69% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
31% Mixed
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 32 Critic Reviews
70
69% Positive
22 Reviews
22 Reviews
31% Mixed
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Told with a quiet cinematic bravura that somehow never calls attention to itself, this is a movie that captures, with singular intimacy and humanity, just how difficult it can be to communicate with the people you love the most.
Sometimes its meandering approach can feel a bit more detached than in Trier’s best work, but this is ultimately a delicate, complex film that lingers, unpacking itself in your mind. You remember it in the same kind of fragmented images that haunt its characters.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 38 User Ratings
7.0
74% Positive
28 Ratings
28 Ratings
21% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
5% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 38 User Ratings
7.0
74% Positive
28 Ratings
28 Ratings
21% Mixed
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
5% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
This is a film about vulnerability, fragility, grief and loss. It puts a strong emphasis on visuals, with photography being a key theme and its also very much an arty film, in that it features symbolism and the like. Its a little abstract perhaps. I thought Gabriel Byrne and Devin Druid gave particularly good performances as the estranged father and son, though Jesse Eisenberg isn't bad either, infact I often think he's well suited to play socially awkward types (that's not meant as a diss at all). Its sad to see his dad struggle to connect with his sons. It would be hard to watch this film and not feel some compassion for the family featured. I suppose its quite contemporary in that it depicts one son's escapism into virtual reality via video games, as he tries to distance himself from his situation and loss. Its a film that features softly spoken dialogue, so if you struggle to hear well, then this may be an issue for you, so I thought I'd mention that. This is a rather thoughtful though also subtle film, one I'm not sure I fully understood all the intricacies of but I certainly enjoyed it nevertheless and so its a film I'd recommend, yes.
Report
I live in a town where we don't get a lot of "art house" cinema (St Pete FL). It's all cineplexes showing the same ten movies. One theater downtown does occasionally (although less and less more recently) let a smaller more adult film slip thru in their "gallery" wing. Recently, because of this "gallery" I saw Son of Saul, Everybody wants some, Miles Ahead and Louder than bombs. People who have art house theaters in their towns..like NYC. LA. Chicago, some college **** probably a little jaded. But where I live, Louder than **** films of that **** a rare treat. If I could see things like Francofonia, High Rise, Sunset Song effortlessly like people in NYC etc then probably Louder than bombs woudn't be such a big deal. THAT BEING SAID, where I live and the small amount of good cinema that slips in, I loved Louder than bombs. I'd take that anyday over the cineplex slop. So thanks to people like Joachim Trier who managed to make something good and yet "commercial" enough to hit St. Pete.
Report
Beneath the well-worn dysfunctional-family setup are bracing observations of the human coping mechanism. Startling expressions of longing and denial go off like detonations within the quietest of exchanges.
But Byrne, who has lacked good movie roles of late, is marvellously grave.
It has its value as a vigorous variation on a theme.
As the family resolves problems of the film's own making, the satisfaction gleaned is relatively minor. The threatened and/or promised explosions fizzle out frustratingly, leaving behind the lurking impression of Louder Than Bombs as a well-crafted, well-played, slickly-written misfire.
A rather silly, pointless and directionless film.
It is a serious psychological drama about relationship, love, unfaithfulness, and many other things.
A talented war photographer dies in a crash, and family members try to cope with their loss.
Movie goes back and force in time, reality mixed up with dreams, allowing us to see same events from different perspectives.
Great casting and performance of leading actors. The ending is a bit too optimistic and it contrasts with the body of the movie. The less cheerful end would be more suitable, in my opinion.
Overall, the movie is masterfully made with a lot of attention to nuances and half-tones.
Report
An interesting story of how a father, his college age son, and his teenage son all react, and cope, with their mother's auto accident death. More of a talky movie about relationships, peeling them back a layer at a time, so you need to be in the mood for this type of story.
Report
A family in the grief, at a different level.
A multi-nationally produced film, especially you can call it a European product, but an English language film that takes place in the New York. The story of a husband and two sons of the famed war photographer who recently died in a car crash. So the film is focused to tell how they are going to cope with their loss, especially the little brother who has differences with his father. They all kind of drifted away from each other, but without an alternate they have to come together to go through it.
This is not a usual mourning theme, but sometimes I felt they forgot they're in mourning. Because the narration quickly shifts to various topics like the birth of a child, a new affair and trying to impress the girl whom the boy has a crush. So with all this, I completely witnessed a different type of film than what it had said. That's not bad, just a refreshing and with constant moving back and forth in in time to disclose some key events.
Mainly the portrayal splits into three to cover those three family members and each has its own specialty. Something like a film for older people, middle-aged and teens, all the these contents smartly joined together. Apart from the good show from the cast, the director did his best as usual, but this is not up to the par with his other works. For a watch this film definitely would do good. Since it's not a Hollywood, you won't have to worry about American film clichés, because it was developed much better and ends better.
6/10
Report
A couple of times older brother Jonah (Jesse Eisenberg) tells younger brother Conrad (Devin Druid) watching the latter’s DVD games “Boring but interesting” “Louder Than Bombs” is boring and, occasionally, interesting more due to the actors than the screenplay by Eskil Vogt and Joachim Trier and the experimentation by the director Joachim Trier.
Last week writing about “Viva” I said that I am a **** for movies about father and sons well here we have a father with two sons and I didn’t get involved with the story but the actors! Gabriel Byrne, currently receiving raves for his performance as husband/father on Broadway in “Long’s Day Journey into Night” has one of the most interesting faces on the motion picture screen today. He is the father, Gene, of Conrad and Jonah, widower of Isabelle (Isabelle Huppert), and, as the film opens, a new grandfather, courtesy of Jonah.
There is a 10-15 minute scene between Devin Druid and, with a typical teenage crush on Melanie (Ruby Jerins) who he is walking home from a party that is delightful, funny but so more important showcases a male teenager in all his awkwardness, fumbling and misunderstanding a teenage girl! We also meet their teacher Amy Ryan who is involved with Gene and Jonah’s wife Amy (Megan Ketch) along with one of Jonah’s high school girlfriend Erin (Rachel Brosnahan) and Isabelle’s longtime colleague Richard played by a very impressive good looking David Strathairn who really is unnecessary to the drama.
All in all there are two reasons for seeing “Louder Than Bombs”: watching Gabriel Byrne’s face, even when doing nothing, and Devin Druid’s spot on performance as a teenager but then I don’t feel that is enough to watch this boring 100 minute film.
Report
Production Company
Motlys,
Memento Films Production,
Nimbus Film,
Animal Kingdom,
Beachside Films,
Memento Films,
Memento Films International,
Bona Fide Productions,
Arte France Cinéma,
Don't Look Now,
Norsk Filminstitutt,
Eurimages,
Nordisk Film & TV-Fond,
Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC),
Ministère des Affaires étrangères et du Développement International,
Institut Français,
Det Danske Filminstitut,
Canal+,
ARTE,
Ciné+
Release Date Apr 8, 2016
Duration 1 h 49 m
Rating R
Genres
Tagline Break the silence
Website
http://louderthanbombs.film/
Awards
Amanda Awards, Norway
• 4 Wins & 8 Nominations
Kosmorama, Trondheim Internasjonale Filmfestival
• 3 Wins & 5 Nominations
Norwegian International Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
