The Dinner 2017

     This film is based on a book with the same title by Herman Koch.  Paul Lohman is a former elementary school teacher and he goes with his wife Claire to dine with his elder brother and his wife.  Stan is a prominent politician running for office and his wife is Babette.  The restaurant is very fancy with many courses.  While they are dining, the film goes back to earlier history and a crime committed by their teenage sons.  The boys are harassing a homeless woman asleep in an ATM enclosure.  The prank gets out of hand and the security camera films everything.  Paul doesn’t get along with his brother Stan and the dinner doesn’t go well.

     I don’t know what it is but about a dinner and the movie is BAD!!  I didn’t like Beatriz at Dinner of 2017 and I really didn’t like Carnage of 2011.  I didn’t like anything about this film.  It wasn’t worth watching from the beginning, it doesn’t get any better and possibly it gets worse.  It’s better to complete any dreaded chore than watch this film!!  It’s a total waste of 120 minutes of your life that you will never get back!!!  Even the menu, the restaurant and the servers are annoying!!  1* (I hated this movie) (I rarely give only 1*!!)

120 min, Crime directed by Oren Moverman with Michael Chernum, Taylor Rae Almonte, Steve Coogan, Laura Linney, Richard Gere, Rebecca Hall, Charlie Plummer, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick, Miles J. Harvey, Laura Hajek, George Shepher, Adepero Oduye, Joel Bissonnette, Chloe Sevigny, Patrick Kevin Clark, Emma R. Mudd.

Note:  Imdb 4.5 out of 10, 51% critic 18% audience on Rotten Tomatoes, Roger Ebert 1 ½*, Metacritic 58 out of 100 with 27 critics 4.4 out of 10 with 18 reviews.

Special Note:  Herman Koch, the author of the book walked away from the European premier in Berlin on February 10, 2017.  He didn’t stay for the after-party and he didn’t talk to the director, cast members or the audience.  He didn’t like the movie at all because the script transferred his cynical story into a moral tale.  There have been three movies made from his book and he said this one “is easily the worst!!”  There was a Dutch film in 2013 and an Italian film in 2014.  Both of these films received and were nominated for numerous awards.  Koch didn’t like the didactical tone (teaching in an annoying or unwanted manner) and references to the themes of American violence and the stigma of mental illness.  Originally Cate Blanchett was selected as director but Oren Moverman replaced her.  Another annoying element of this film is in the background is the Apple Alert Sound during the entire movie!!  WHY!!!