IslandGuru Who payed the critics

Dartherer I really don't get the hype.

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Cem Lamb This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

Wuchak Many reviewers denounce 2008's "Vinyan" because it's not a typical horror film, but that's precisely why it's worthwhile. It's original.An American couple in Thailand discover possible evidence that their young son who died in a tsunami six months earlier is still alive and living in the jungles of Myanmar (Burma). They pay some dubious characters a lot of money to go up river into the forbidden country. Things go from bad to worse."Vinyan" is equal parts haunting, beautiful, strange and creepy. The plot is thin but the story maintains your attention. The acting is excellent all around and you believe that these characters are real. The five main characters are Paul and Jeane Bellmer (Rufus Sewell and Emmanuelle Béart), a human trafficker named Thaksin Gao, the captain of the small boat named Sonchaï and the couple's liaison, Kim (Julie Dreyfus).Memorable parts abound -- Kim's subtle-but-clear seduction of Paul, the beautiful floating-lanterns at the beach ceremony, the awesome tree fortress, etc.The meaning of the film is ambiguous, but it provokes thought on many things: The nature of grief -- letting go or not letting go, obsession, madness, tribal instincts, going feral and more.As for the tribe of lost kids in the last act, are they vinyan -- angry, confused spirits who suffered horrible deaths -- or are they simply a pack of kids gone wild in the jungle a la "Lord of the Flies"? I say the evidence points to the latter.In any event, "Vinyan" has elements of films like "Apocalypse Now," "The Emerald Forest," "Fitzcaraldo" (or "Aguirre") and the aforementioned "Lord of the Flies".The film runs 96 minutes and was shot in Thailand.GRADE: B+

Paul Magne Haakonsen "Vinyan" is the type of movie that just doesn't sit well with everyone or has a certain appeal to just anyone in the audience. I had expectations to this movie, because from what I read on the DVD cover, then I was intrigued.And then I watched the movie, and that expectation dissipated like mist before the rising morning sun. This movie wasn't anything at all what I had expected it to be.What works well enough in "Vinyan" is the atmosphere and the building up of suspense. However, it is not really given enough room to bloom into something great, because it is weighed down by the horrible slow pace the movie trots forward in. Plus, the characters in the movie were not really characters with dimensions and personalities that you cared about; they came off a shallow and lifeless drones that were just milling about at the whim of the director.Visually, then there is a lot of great scenes, especially in the jungle, that are impressive.However, entertainment-wise, then "Vinyan" fails to fully deliver, at least for my account. I suppose I wasn't in that particular target audience that would find such a movie enjoyable.

helaumur This film makes no sense, I thought Rufus Sewell is fit it;ll be a good film, but no. All it does is rain, they run out of cash they end up in the middle of no where, looking for a kid who might not exist, why didn't they just go to the law? There is a lack of script and character study, nothing is explained like why is Sewell killed by weird kids and why does Emannuelle Beart sit in the jungle being felt up by the kids, do the find the kid, how are they getting home?Worst film ever, makes no sense at all, someone please tell me if i have missed anything.Awful.

hannahbeth85 Vinyan was without doubt one of the worst things I have ever spent 2 hours doing. Jeanne the lead female character was the most annoying woman I have ever come across, I was actually hoping something painful and awful happened to her after 10 minutes of getting into the film. I could find no empathy with either character I really could not care less if they found their beloved son or not. So many ends were left untied that it became laughable, it seemed the writers started every morning and didn't bother to follow up from where they had left off. Avoid at all costs, I thought I'd seen some bad films until I'd seen Vinyan. EEUuuugghhh