Written and directed by Swedish director Amanda Kernell

Charter seeks to portray a divorce process and the conflicts that follow. When Alice ( Ane Dahl Torp ) realizes that the custody of her two children, Elina ( Tintin Poggats Sarri ) and Vincent ( Troy Lundkvist ), will fall to her ex-husband, Mattias ( Sverrir Gudnason)), Alice then chose to take her two children for a vacation. Not a wise choice and clearly an illegal act, considering that Mattias did not know about the vacation plans at all. However, Alice really wanted to spend time with her children. At the same time, Alice also wants to use the vacation time to convince Elina and Vincent that they can choose to live with their mother.

Unlike Kramer vs. Kramer (Robert Benton, 1979) and Marriage Story (Noah Baumbach, 2019) which have a similar narrative theme, Kernell does not provide more intimate and deep processing or exploration of the characters or conflicts that are presented in the Charter narrative timeline . Since its inception, Charterpresented like a piece of a puzzle. Viewers are asked to continue to suspect what really happened to the characters whose storylines they were following. Why did Vincent call Alice? Why didn't Mattias allow Alice to see her two children? What caused the divorce between Mattias and Alice? Why did Elina have such a cold attitude towards her mother? Why did the whole town hate Alice's presence so much? Some of these questions are slowly being answered as the storyline progresses. However, the method of storytelling chosen by Kernell clearly presents its own challenges.

Read Also : Malèna Película completa

Indeed, Charter is presented like most Scandinavian drama films - telling a calm story, far from being explosive, and dialogues that appear minimalistic. However, it's hard to really get attached to a particular character when Charter chooses to present its characterization with a number of limitations. The ambiguity of the story created by Kernell also often hinders this film from being able to speak more emotionally straightforwardly. When this film manages to build a narrative that Alice's character is a mentally unstable mother, the storyline then presents a plot about the possibility of violence perpetrated by the Mattias character towards her children. When Charterwill end the story with the characters Elina and Vincent returning to Mattias, this film then presents a twist of the story that makes the adventures of the characters Elina and Vincent continue together with the characters Alice. The character of Mattias, who is more often present in the background of the story, also did not help Charter to present a stronger storyline.

Read Also : El olvido que seremos Película completa
 
Not that Charter is a bad film presentation. Overall, Kernell wants to make Charter a mirror of a divorce process in which there is no "good" or "evil figure" but a fight between two egos that is so realistic and all the bad things that arise because of it. The appearance given by the actors in the film's acting department is also very strong, especially Torp, who appears so phenomenally in processing the various dimensions of emotions that the character he plays is going through. Although present in a limited capacity, Gudnason also presents a deep and dominant impression on the character of Mattias. The production quality of Charter is captivating with Sophia Olsson's cinematographic layout provides strong support for the calm atmosphere that this film brings.

REVIEW: HIS HOUSE (2020)

Ahusband and wife move into a house with all plans to make their dreams come true. Unfortunately, their move was greeted with various terrors that slowly began to disturb their relationship. A familiar-sounding premise? Wait a minute. A directorial debut for British director Remi Weekes , His House offers a nightmare lineup of a haunted house that aims more than just to scare the audience. Through a story script prepared by Weekes based on story ideas from Felicity Evans and Toby Venables , His Housealso provides a deep and emotional exploration of trauma from the past, grief about losing a loved one, to various fears in facing a new environment. The milestone that made His House one of the most memorable horror releases of the year.

Read Also : El Rey de Zamunda 2 Película completa

The timeline for His House's storytelling begins when a married couple who are also immigrants from South Sudan, Bol ( Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù ) and Rial ( Wunmi Mosaku ), are accepted as refugees in the UK. The two were later relocated from a refugee shelter to a house on the outskirts of London. With various bad events they had experienced in their home country which was ravaged by war, Bol and Rial are determined to make their new home the first step for their future happiness. However, the process of adapting to a new environment is clearly not an easy challenge. Their problems are further complicated by mysterious figures who begin to appear and haunt their new home.

Read Also : Avengers Endgame Película completa

Obviously it would have been easier for Weekes to develop the horror premise of the haunted house in his film using the standard array of terror tactics that one can easily find in similar horror films. Indeed, Weekes still makes use of the familiar array of terror tactics in many scenes of His House- the appearance of creepy figures in the corners of various scenes, the sudden appearance of horror figures in a scene, to the use of electric sockets in the appearance of a mysterious line of characters. However, Weekes did not only present these terror tactics to frighten or shock the audience. In a smart way, Weekes is able to provide a scene processing that feels fresh so that the familiar ways are still able to surprise and don't feel boring at all.

Read Also : Para Toda La Vida Película completa

Of course, along with his efforts to bring horror terror to his film, Weekes is also adept at coloring His House's timeline with a touch of social commentary about the lives of refugees and the various problems they have to live with. Since the moment the two main characters came to their new home, buildings about the past trauma and grief that the two experienced continue to get the spotlight in the excavation of Weekes' stories. A twist in the story given in the third half of the film - which opens the veil of truth about the relationship between the two main characters - is also very well processed and manages to give a horror impression about a deep sense of humanity. Terror that is so emotional and will not be easily erased from memory.

 
Weekes's narrative of His House's storyline is not completely smooth. His House 's sluggish rhythm and the use of symbolism in a number of scenes made the storytelling less effective. It doesn't give too much of an effect considering that Weekes is able to produce the right horror atmosphere in every scene that comes from a prime quality film production work. Cultivate the tense atmosphere that is present in every scene of His Houseclearly also comes from Weekes's ability to work on the narrative of his characters carefully. Even though it seems simple in the first half of the storytelling, Weekes slowly opens layer by layer in the characterization of the two characters and presents them as complex and intriguing figures. Just look at how Weekes cultivates the different attitudes between Bol's character and Rial's character in responding to the new environment they currently live in. Or when the two characters are trying to face the supernatural terror that continues to haunt their new home.

Dìrísù and Mosaku also contributed greatly in bringing to life the two characters they played. The appearance of the two will not only be able to make the audience feel the various emotional goals that the two characters they play have experienced and felt. Dìrísù and Mosaku also give life and soul to the story of His House and make every moment of the story in this film appear so alive.