French TV journalist Marie Lelay (Cécile de France) is vacationing in Thailand with her producer boyfriend Didier (Thierry Neuvic). They survive the 2004 tsunami. She has a near-death experience which haunts her. She struggles to cope and leaves her job to write a book. In San Francisco, George Lonegan (Matt Damon) was once a professional psychic. He meets Melanie (Bryce Dallas Howard) at a cooking class. Marcus and Jason are 12 year old twins from London. Their mother is addicted and Jason gets killed. Marcus is sent into foster care.
The opening tsunami sequence is harrowing. However, the three storyline structure drains away much of the tension. I try to follow all three stories equally but I can't really get into the kids story. I also start to lose interest in the French story after a compelling start. Matt Damon has some good interactions with Bryce Dallas Howard. She does the big acting. There are some very compelling individual scenes. However, these stories need more connections. Director Clint Eastwood doesn't have the style or the edge to bring real interest into this movie. His matter of fact style leaves me cold and detached from the material.
The opening tsunami sequence is harrowing. However, the three storyline structure drains away much of the tension. I try to follow all three stories equally but I can't really get into the kids story. I also start to lose interest in the French story after a compelling start. Matt Damon has some good interactions with Bryce Dallas Howard. She does the big acting. There are some very compelling individual scenes. However, these stories need more connections. Director Clint Eastwood doesn't have the style or the edge to bring real interest into this movie. His matter of fact style leaves me cold and detached from the material.