Funny Games

A middle-class couple and their son motor along country lanes, with sunlight dappling through the trees. The mood is prosperous, relaxed… a little opera plays on the car stereo… until the heavy metal comes clashing in on the soundtrack. This opening seems familiar to some, I’m sure, this being Michael Haneke’s American remake of his brilliantly conceived 1997 Austrian film of the same title.

This new version sticks rigorously close to the original in both content and style. An affluent family arrive at their lakeside summer house, only to find themselves terrorised and tortured by two politely psychopathic young men. Little is explained, either to the victims or the audience, and the realism of the film is broken several times, confronting the viewers and challenging us to consider our own motives in watching violence.

Haneke handles his disturbing material with meticulous control, aided by strong performances from Naomi Watts and Tim Roth as the terrorised couple, and Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet as the malevolent youngsters.

Sandra Hebron, London Film Festival Programme