I found this film pretty boring. The main reason was the sheer lack of personality, wit or individuality among the characters. We are glibly informed that so and so "has written a successful book" (how often do we get this in "New York Intellectual" movies a la Woody Allen, Jesus!) and I'm sure, among the acquaintances of the author and the screenwriter this is pretty usual but, wait: for a person to be a 'successful writer' you'd think they would have a bit more personality and wit than, say, Joanna or the obnoxious Trueman who subjects Joanna to such an insulting interrogation - just nonchalantly assigning them to this profession won't do – there is a need for it to be credible! And we are expected to embrace these dull persons and care whether or not there is carnal knowledge between them? They are so unappealing and Sam appears near comatose although, admittedly, Eva is a perfect match for him: Guillaume is probably the better option for Keira but does she have the spunk to go for it? If you care, watch the movie and have a good sleep immediately after, if not before.
Reviews
3 Reviews
Modra
(2010)
Dull material makes for a dull film
15 July 2011
The film relates how these two teenagers, Lena and Leco, arrive from Toronto, Canada, in semi-rural Slovakia and it follows their interactions with the locals including Lena's relatives - and Leco's first ever experience of European culture. The couple is not 'an item' - Lena asked Leco to come at the last minute because her boyfriend had just ditched her and she had a spare ticket (they must have been lucky because I have never been able to switch the name on a bargain ticket!).
The depiction of life in Slovakia seems pretty authentic and moderately interesting. It's not very colourful but the local characters are natural and not exaggerated (as with your 'stage' Italian or Irishman with lots of Mamma Mias and Begorrahs!). The cinematography is sound if rather uninspired - but the Bratislava area is not all that scenic in any case and we witness a truthful depiction of a "Europeanized" modern former Communist country - drab still, but picking up. Nobody seems to comment on Lena's nose-ring which is believable.
My problem with this movie is with the characterizations - we discover hardly anything about Lena, she is totally dull and empty throughout and if this film is aiming to depict the lives of dull people, then it does a great job. The question then becomes was it worthwhile doing when you are probably going to bore the heck out of your audience? Leco is a bit more interesting and seems to be much better mannered than your average seventeen year old - his reaction to this new culture is of some interest and is believable.
My opinion is that the director chose to work with some pretty boring characters and in so doing was bound to produce a dull film - it would have taken a phenomenal talent to breathe much life into this story.
The depiction of life in Slovakia seems pretty authentic and moderately interesting. It's not very colourful but the local characters are natural and not exaggerated (as with your 'stage' Italian or Irishman with lots of Mamma Mias and Begorrahs!). The cinematography is sound if rather uninspired - but the Bratislava area is not all that scenic in any case and we witness a truthful depiction of a "Europeanized" modern former Communist country - drab still, but picking up. Nobody seems to comment on Lena's nose-ring which is believable.
My problem with this movie is with the characterizations - we discover hardly anything about Lena, she is totally dull and empty throughout and if this film is aiming to depict the lives of dull people, then it does a great job. The question then becomes was it worthwhile doing when you are probably going to bore the heck out of your audience? Leco is a bit more interesting and seems to be much better mannered than your average seventeen year old - his reaction to this new culture is of some interest and is believable.
My opinion is that the director chose to work with some pretty boring characters and in so doing was bound to produce a dull film - it would have taken a phenomenal talent to breathe much life into this story.
Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost
(2011 TV Movie)
Not quite up to the usual standard
22 May 2011
It's hard to do justice to Jesse Stone watching it on commercial TV: so far I have held out for the DVDs but the ending of the excellent last episode was so suspenseful, I couldn't wait. The greatest strength of this series has always been the subtle characterizations - of course Jesse himself, but also Suitcase, Rose, Dix, Healy, Hasty, Hanson, D'Angelo and Doc Perkins - all brilliantly drawn and acted, without any need to go overboard. Yet, this time, I felt there was a bit too much dependence on past character development and a rehashing of a lot of their old lines (Hasty, for example, must always say "I'm very fond of you, Jesse"): I didn't find any of the new appearances were particularly engaging; with the possible exception of the wonderfully odious new Chief (sorry I didn't get his name), they seemed rather a grey lot - and the issue here is direction and screenplay, not acting.
The end was a bit too sudden for me and, yet again, we must wait for the next episode before a number of loose ends get resolved (including the main plot-line). Actually, my channel concluded so abruptly that there were no end credits and I didn't realize it was over. Robert Harmon builds atmosphere brilliantly, the screenplay is witty and taut (but rather less so this time) and some clever in-jokes with Jesse using Dr. Dix's "what do you think of that?" At times it teeters on the edge of sentimentality with Jesse almost weeping and Gino Fish becoming almost affectionate – on the edge, I say, but certainly not over it.
It's not the best episode but I hugely look forward to seeing it on DVD and may then be obliged to revise some of my first impressions.
The synopsis here is incorrect, by the way, when is says that Jesse is reinstated.
The end was a bit too sudden for me and, yet again, we must wait for the next episode before a number of loose ends get resolved (including the main plot-line). Actually, my channel concluded so abruptly that there were no end credits and I didn't realize it was over. Robert Harmon builds atmosphere brilliantly, the screenplay is witty and taut (but rather less so this time) and some clever in-jokes with Jesse using Dr. Dix's "what do you think of that?" At times it teeters on the edge of sentimentality with Jesse almost weeping and Gino Fish becoming almost affectionate – on the edge, I say, but certainly not over it.
It's not the best episode but I hugely look forward to seeing it on DVD and may then be obliged to revise some of my first impressions.
The synopsis here is incorrect, by the way, when is says that Jesse is reinstated.
Tell Your Friends