Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

lavender504 Applause is a such a great movie! I got the chance to see it at a film festival and was impressed with Paprika Steen's performance. It's the type of movie that definitely keeps an audience engaged. It is an absolute "must-see." As an indie film lover, I haven't come across a film recently that is able to capture an audience with such powerful emotions throughout. It relates to many people in everyday life and Paprika is such a strong actress. I keep wondering why I haven't seen her in more films. This movie leaves you with a sense of empathy if you didn't have it before and gives you a chance to look at people's lives in a different perspective, since no one knows exactly what someone else may be going through in their personal lives. Paprika's ability to convey her character Thea was perfect. Her ability to sway an audience is phenomenal. I give the film two thumbs up and can't wait to see it again!

rainkomuling I saw Applause from Hamptons International Film Festival. Mother-child concerns are the main story in Appause. Thea has strong career but she is an alcoholic and a divorced women who lost custody of her kids. Thea loves her kids, she tries to stay on the wagon. She tried to get the custody at first, she gave up in the end. How great the character of the mother is. She loves her kids so much, she really wants to stay with them, and her kids love her also, she realizes that she is not able to stay with them. That's the most difficult decision her character has to make. I like the ending, because there is no clear answer to her situation. Thea keeps trying and gets the custody of her kids, but I don't think she can always be a good mom. To stop drinking for an alcoholic is a very long and difficult process, and whenever she drinks and gets drunk, the kids are gonna have a hard time. I love this movie because the character of the mom is great, and she knows herself, and the ending sparked my imagination: can she stay sober successfully, or will she just give up and turn back to be an alcoholic?

offdwallnotdrack I loved this film. Is the plot unique? No. Is the cinematography revolutionary? No. Is the portrayal of this mid-aged recovering alcoholic actress executed well? YES.The previous reviewer mentioned something along the lines of how the hand-held shaky cam was just a copy cat gimmick of older indie films and how this is just another drab danish film to do the exact same crap yet again. Tell you the truth, that sounds like the rantings of an A-list film snob.Granted that the hand-held method, 3D, CGI, and dozens of other cinematography related methods are very frequently used purely just as gimmicks and very often don't add anything to the actual film, it still is a legitimate tool for cinematographers to use, and can be used to support the nature of the film. I think we're bombarded with these gimmicks so often, and so often get nothing out of it, that many people just start associated that visual tool with being distracting and pointless, even if used properly.Also, I think there was a mention about Michael Falch, and how this Comedian turned serious actor wasn't any good because he was trying too hard and overacting, and to be fair, I think that observation was due to a preconceived notion about the actor because the reviewer was familiar with him. I never heard of Michael Falch and have no idea who he is (before the film at least) and thought nothing of the acting in a negative way. I would've never guessed that he was a comedian. He was very good in the film and very convincing and obviously a natural born actor.Anyways, back to the film. Like the title says, this is a slice of life sorta movie. It is not a mapped out plot that goes from point A to point B, but rather the Director just lets us into this woman's life and gives us permission to observe her most intimate and personal moments. Thanks to the amazing (Merryl Streep Level) acting of Paprika Steen, this observation is fascinating, and it's so convincing, that you often feel very uncomfortable and filled with anxiety because like in real life, when we are faced with adversity, we often struggle to find a path to walk on, and we often do things that surprise even ourselves, and find ourselves in situations that we never planned on being in, and suddenly realize we have no idea how to escape. You just can't help but relate to the situations in this real-life reconstruction. This is only supported by the hand-held cinematography.The truth is, almost every story out there has been told at least 100 times in some form or another, but how many of those attempts are successful? Maybe 1 or 2? Sometimes never. We see so many crap movies about recovering alcoholics and people battling with their inner demons/children/careers that it's just not interesting to see anymore, so that's why we need 200 million dollars movies just to catch our eye and hold our attention. With it's simple formula, Applaus does what the majority of films out there cannot, and that is holding your attention firmly. It doesn't do this with big bells and whistles, but with a very careful and caring attention to detail that keeps you in a constant state of uneasiness that dips and rises from sadness, to suspense to moments of simple joy throughout the entire runtime.If for nothing else, see this film for the amazing and refreshing acting of Paprika Steen who is actually being nominated for Best Actress I believe.

Jimpansy So this is not another dogma-movie, but why oh why do Danish movie makers insist on the hand held camera and the grainy pictures? Does this make it more believable, do we Do reality look anything like that? Another brain fart, another artsy movie without any substance whatsoever. Only intention is trying to be high culture. And that obviously can be achieved only by emulating better and older movies that did the hand held thing first. There may have been a point to this sheet initially, but boy am I tired of the lack of imagination. Right now I'm willing to watch any crap Danish movie if the pictures are in focus. I'm terribly sorry, but making the world look like I've forgotten my contacts do not make it art! Especially not after having watched the bloody style for 15 years now.So now for the movie itself. A story about a theater diva on a downward spiral fueled by alcohol. In itself a quite appealing setup. The main character, Stella, is supposed to be sexy, charming, troubled, exotic. Steen does not however make us believe it. It's obvious she herself wants to be all of the above, but it comes out pathetic. Overacting, ridiculous screaming and she can't seem to leave her one comic trademark behind either.As for the story it's supposed to be depressing and dark, but nobody has the courage to make it so. It turns out rather bland instead. Does she end up murdering her children? The suspense is killing me! Well she doesn't and I don't care.The actors do fine work for the most part, Michael Falch, even the the children, but perpetual overacting from this unfunny comedienne turned serious actor is embarrassing to say the least.The movie is rather short though. It felt long, but wasn't. The only positive I can think of! Come on Denmark. Shake the beast that is Lars Trier and dogma movies and reinvent yourself. Because this current tendency makes me sad!