Winter’s Tale ~ 2014

Winter’s Tale. 
2014.
PG-13.
118 minutes.
Starring Colin Farrell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Russell Crowe, William Hurt, Jennifer Connelly, Graham Greene, Will Smith.
Directed by Akiva Goldsman.

A burglar falls for an heiress as she dies in his arms. When he learns that he has the gift of reincarnation, he sets out to save her. [IMDb]

I can sum up this movie in one single word: Silly. Normally, I’m a sucker for this kind of thing. I love fantastical whimsy. I also love a good period piece, especially a romantic period piece. But, the trailer really didn’t do expectant audiences any justice whatsoever. What was billed as something akin to Doctor Zhivago was actually more along the lines of The Neverending Story (pun intended).

I’m not sure if the book that inspired this film is any better at explaining the rather convoluted and very unbelievable plot (with so many holes it might as well have been filmed on Swiss cheese and not celluloid), but it can’t stand on its own. The idea that within each of us is a single miracle that is meant to change another person’s life (and by default the world) is a beautiful concept. But had they stopped there and not added in the whole good vs. evil face-off (with Crowe as a very unconvincing and underdeveloped demon and Will Smith as a horrendously miscast Lucifer), the film would have been much better off.

I will say that the chemistry between Farrell and Brown Findlay (of Downton Abbey fame) was believable. And, Farrell, who carried the weight of the movie on his shoulders, did a fine job despite this rather ridiculous “tale.” Ooh, I really woke up on the wrong side of the bed today, didn’t I?

Summer in February ~ 2013

Sometimes fact is so much more interesting than adaptation.

Summer in February
2013

NR

100 minutes
Starring Dominic Cooper, Dan Stevens and Emily Browning
Directed by Christopher Menaul

“Based on Jonathan Smith's novel about love and loss among a bohemian colony of artists, which flourished in the wild coastal region of Cornwall before the First World War.” [Metrodome Distribution]

I do love a good period piece…unfortunately, not this one. Summer in February had the potential to be one of those sweeping, moody, gripping period pieces that draw you in…were it not for its slowly-timed and unorganized script. The true tale that inspired this film has everything – passion, love, betrayal, death…and yet, despite all of those elements it failed to hold my attention.

I do feel the real-life triangle between artists Alfred Munnings and Florence Carter-Wood and their mutual friend Gilbert Evans deserved a better retelling than this. I encourage anyone who watches this movie, who isn’t familiar with the Lamorna Group, do a little digging and trace the roots of this Bohemian set of early 20^th-century artists. You’ll find the historic account of their lives much more interesting than the film.

From a cinematography POV, this film was a bit of a love letter to Cornwall’s breathtaking geography. And, performance-wise, Dominic Cooper (as Munnings), Dan “Why-Did-I-Pull-a-David-Caruso-and-Leave-a-Hit-Show-Like-Downton-Abbey?” Stevens (as Evans) and Emily Browning (as Carter-Wood) all handle the roles deftly and with heart. They’re believable and compelling, despite the failings of the script. Overall though, you’re better off settling down with a good biography and a nice cuppa.