IslandGuru Who payed the critics

Jenna Walter The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Cody One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

groggo Guess this is well made, if you like endless jump cuts, black and white grainy shots that are almost impossible to see (and understand), music that assaults the ears, and characters that are very difficult to like.This film took a dive only 20 minutes in, after I discovered what Goof and Hugo, the two Amsterdam hustlers, were up to. Basically, they not only exploit young female tourists, but all but ruin them in the bargain (they steal their money and rip out the first pages of their passports to 'prove' they've made a conquest). This obnoxious stuff becomes a 'contest' no less. They do all of this with such glitz and chutzpah that I became really irritated -- both with the characters and the filmmaker, who somehow (and enigmatically) tried to almost romanticize grossly reprehensible behaviour.When you base a movie on the dreamlife of scumbags, there's a good chance you're not going to have a sympathetic audience.Even the ending is 'cutesy,' for God's sake. The scumbags find happiness with a dog. Just what in the world was the filmmaker trying to convey here? That lack of any moral sense is rewarding, that it's a gratifying life choice? If this is the point, about 98 per cent more irony needs to be injected into the 'story'. Most of the film was just zip-zip, whiz-bang irritation for me. Even the 'plot,' if that's what it's called, is derivative, altogether too familiar, and, well, pretty stupid.Maybe I'm too old and not 'hip' enough to appreciate this nonsense. Instead, I felt a lot of pain for the victims of these shitheads.

bob the moo The film deals with two apparently heartless, empty men, Goof and Hugo, who seduce tourists and then rob them of their passports and some of their cash. This is until they meet Lara and Goof finds himself too attached to continue his ruthless ways.In looking at these two empty men, this film seems to ignore the fact that it is as empty and soulless as the two protagonists. The film has a very slight story - so slight that it's hard to care. Basically the two men find their match in the equally untrustworthy Lara, there's also a love triangle plot and a bet. But really it's very thin and without substance.The performances are pretty good, although Goof is not totally convincing. However the script lets everyone down and the director cannot hide it. The director tries to be as hip as possible (he's obviously seen Trainspotting and the like), he uses a pumping dance soundtrack, he uses different film stocks, slow-mo, different camera angles etc etc. It really like he's making a 90 minute pop video - but that doesn't make a good film, instead it just highlights how empty the whole thing is.The ending doesn't really mean anything and the film doesn't have any moral or message. Instead this just wants to get a young audience by having drugs and sex, fast music, music video direction and hip, morally ambiguous characters.

DiBo This is a surprisingly good movie from the people who brought us the Dutch movie Zusje. Although Zusje was a big hit (especially for a Dutch movie) in the Netherlands, this film has had a short cinema rotation due to lack of success. I wonder why. To me Siberia is as good as the first film by Westdijk. Reading the plot makes you wonder if there's any plot at all. The basic story of Siberia seems a bit simplistic at first: two guys (Hugo and Goof) get their kicks from sleeping with female tourists and robbing these girls from their money and passport the morning after. When they meet Lara from Siberia their lives change and their friendship is put to the test. This may seem quite a standard tale, but it's not because of the way the story is told. In it's dynamics and sound it's a bit similar to Lola Rennt: a lot of camera movement, thundering beats in the exiting soundtrack by Junkie XL and as a viewer you can feel the adrenaline as if you're in the movie too. There are blurry black & white shots to make several scenes even more intense. This is one of those movies that have a look and feel of a music video with the way it's directed, but it only accentuates the emotions and actions in Siberia. And although the idea is not knew, Siberia is intriguing and fresh. The acting is terrific and the dialogs are great and sometimes very funny (Hugo gets dressed in the morning after sleeping with a tourist girl, when the girl wakes up: "Hugo?..." "Yes, I Go", Hugo replies). Warning: the film has a very nice ending, after it seems to have ended...!!!Definitely 9 out of 10 for me.

Bar-2 I did like this movie. Mostly because it is just much fun and very recognizable, mainly becuase it plays in Amsterdam, where I live. But it is more than just a fun movie. Although it isn't brilliant, it is good enough.A feel good movie which makes you glad to live in Amsterdam, glad you are not a tourist here!