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Truly Dreadful Film

That was an excellent one.

Redundant and unnecessary.

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

I don't find the movie particularly interesting. There's a consensus among the viewers that Benny's actions are influenced by his lifestyle and media violence addiction. Whether this was Haneke's idea or not the message is simply wrong.What is overlooked is that Benny is a typical psychopath. In real life it'd be much harder to make a diagnosis but for fictional characters approximations are good enough. The portrayal isn't completely accurate but many of the common signs are there: shallow affect, the total lack of empathy, conscience and remorse, insidiousness, impulsiveness, irresponsibility, casual use of violence, etc. Anyone who wants to learn more should read "Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us" by Robert D. Hare, one of the leading experts in the field.Long story short: Benny's media preferences are the extension of his pathological personality not the other way around. Psychopaths existed long before Hollywood and their actions are not dictated by something they saw in a film somewhere.

The central idea of Benny's Video is whether people in western society have become so desensitised to images of violence in film and the media that they become capable of committing acts of murder themselves. It asks is the culture in the developed world such, that we are losing touch with the reality of violence. In this film a teenage boy from a privileged background kills a girl 'to see what it's like'. On discovering the crime, his parents automatically decide to cover it up. They are emotionless and discuss the problem in terms of a logic puzzle; at no point do they ever even mention the murdered girl or her family. With this in mind, it's obvious that Benny's Video is also about the banality of evil; the way that acts of horror are often committed by frighteningly calm and seemingly unremarkable people. The film emphasises this theme by having an underplayed aesthetic. The act of murder is depicted in a way as far removed from typical film violence as is possible. It's caught on video but framed such that we see virtually nothing, instead it is conveyed by sound instead of image. The thump of the bolt gun and the girl's screams are what indicate to us what is going on. It's actually quite disconcerting to have it depicted this way and in some respects it's more horrific as its clumsiness feels more authentic. Its approach is so unusual it throws you off guard somewhat making the whole thing that bit more effective.It's a cold film. Michael Haneke has made it intentionally such as a counterbalance to the way reality is depicted in the media in general where artificial joviality is widespread. It does have to be said though that the coldness fits in with the theme of the film, it's about emotionally stunted people after all. It feels like a film that has become maybe even more relevant today too. Benny lives in an enclosed world of technology where he watches violent films and news feeds; it feels he was living a life that many others now do in the internet age. So from this point-of-view it still carries a lot of relevance and seems quite prophetic. Not that I personally think that the viewing of violent films makes a person violent themselves, I think the seed is in an individual irrespective of this but perhaps even Haneke thinks this too, as its quite obvious that Benny's parents are capable of repulsive acts while devoid of emotion. They are not so far removed from Benny, his impulses seem genetic.This is a disturbing film but not a particularly graphic one. Although viewers should be alerted to the opening scene of a pig being killed which is not a sequence for the squeamish at all. But overall this is a film that is about the effect of violent films, as opposed to actually being one itself. It's thought-provoking but not really entertainment as such.

BEFORE READING THIS REVIEW... WATCH THE MOVIE! IT'S A MONUMENTAL SPOILER.The reality that happens in front of Benny's eyes doesn't mean anything. For him reality is video. He sees violent movies and television news, all of them about crime, corruption and war. Some people who have left their comments here said that the trip to Egypt didn't make much sense, that it loses strength. Obviously they don't see the contrasting effect between the two things. In Egypt, people from the middle and lower classes are really poor. But what does Egypsian TV shows?... Music videos, live concerts, football, etc. Benny doesn't like that so he turns the TV off, these things don't interest him. However in his country... What does the TV show all day? Had Benny reacted the same way?Where are they worse? In Austria or in Egypt? If he had been born in Egypt... Would he murder a girl because he wanted to know how it feels?When Benny shows the video to their parents, they don't even flinch. What their son did doesn't affect them, doesn't disturb them, doesn't cause them any disgust... ¿? ... It's unbelievable. Worse, when his parents discuss it alone, they even never mention the girl's family. They feel no sorrow about the girl or her family. They just think of themselves and how will they hide everything. In fact, they become accomplices of the murderer.I read all comments before posting my review.Someone had said: "He seems initially perturbed after the murder"... What movie did he/she watch? That can only be true if eating a yogurt and drawing next to a dead body were synonyms of perturbation. Another person had said: "Michael Haneke's disturbing film suggests that violent videos may not only desensitize, but influence some to commit violent acts"OK... Isn't Benny's video (written and directed by Michael Haneke) a movie about a murder? About a family that puts a crime under the carpet? About a boy pointing at his parents as they were the murderers when that isn't true? About impunity?So... No one thinks that THIS movie is one of those violent videos? It's apology of the crime or reflection on violence? I think it's more of the first one.1/10

Michael Haneke is a filmmaker that isn't afraid to go all out to shock his viewer. My only previous experience with the director was his later film 'Funny Games', which I enjoyed immensely for its pitch black humour and willingness to go that extra mile to ensure that the film shocks as it should. While I didn't enjoy Benny's Video as much as Funny Games on the whole, it is an overall more shocking film due to the youth of its main character and the matter-of-fact way that the story is presented. Michael Haneke affords his film a gritty atmosphere through cheap-looking film stock and constant cuts with material shot on a video camera. The film focuses on a young man named Benny. Benny has an obsession with violent horror, and his favourite tape appears to be footage of a pig being slaughtered. He takes it upon himself to steal the slaughter gun, and when his parents leave him at home unsupervised; he invites a young girl into his house. It's not long before the slaughter gun is being put to use again, and the murder of the girl is caught on Benny's video camera.On the one hand, this is a dark and gritty portrayal of a situation that no one would want to be in, and at its strong points; Benny's Video is an emotionally involving and even tormenting film. However, it would seem that the director wasn't really sure about where exactly to take it, and has unfortunately seen fit to pad the film out with drawn out and not entirely relevant sequences, which ultimately brings it down. All the main characters are well presented and believable, and the film benefits from a strong cast of actors that manage to get into their characters well. The best scene in the movie sees Benny's parents discussing what they do, and if the entire movie was as good as that scene; Haneke would have had a masterpiece on his hands. Michael Haneke's direction is very 'no frills', as while he uses tricks such as cutting the film with video camera footage, it's all done very calmly...which ultimately benefits the film, as the sober atmosphere really allows the audience to be dragged in. Overall, as mentioned; the film isn't as easy to get on with as the later 'Funny Games', but Benny's Video will no doubt appeal to those who enjoy dark and challenging films.