I'll admit; this isn't my typical kind of film. I only went because the writer is Joel Wyman. I am a huge fan of FRINGE, a science fiction/family drama for which he served as show-runner, and as a writer. I was pleasantly surprised: it's not too shabby. The film uses an intricate little plot about Farrell's character's motivations, and how he was going to exact his revenge..
Wyman seems to go for common themes in his work - love, building something, family, and connections. Although there is an underlying theme about love, the film does not skip out on the action: This is a story about revenge in the name of love, and there are several scenes in which people die in the most terrible ways imaginable. Right at the start even, when our characters get involved in a little "game."
Maybe I am a huge softie, but when we first meet Victor and Beatrice, who had been staring at each other across from their respective apartments, I felt very emotional about a specific gesture in the scene. There's a bit of a slow buildup, but that is suddenly dashed when we find out why Beatrice has really been watching Victor. Turns out she is need of a bit of revenge, and she has some proof of something that could get Victor into a lot of trouble. As the plot progresses, these two seem to develop genuine feelings for one another. Victor lost something precious to him, and both could understand the need to make those responsible for their pain, pay.
My chief beefs with the film stem around a few things.
First, Farrell... well, I hope he deliberately looked like he was staring into the distance all the time. I guess he had that thousand- yard-stare because of his family and his hopes to avenge them at all costs, but Farrell left me flat. Noomi Rapace was OK, but I liked her much better in Prometheus. I found her Beatrice mostly annoying, although her back-story was heartfelt, and I understood how she felt. In my opinion, Terrence Howard is the winner here; his Alphonse, a truly disgusting sociopath.
Second, the love part was a hard sell for me because of the terms in which Victor and Beatrice become involved. But, then again, they did share a deep hurt, so they seemed to understand one another. Not the best love story ever, but good enough for a film.
Like many films, this one uses an object to convey some kind of meaning. I won't spoil it here, but I liked its use. There is also some nice use of cinematography.
It was fun and I felt my money was well spent.
Wyman seems to go for common themes in his work - love, building something, family, and connections. Although there is an underlying theme about love, the film does not skip out on the action: This is a story about revenge in the name of love, and there are several scenes in which people die in the most terrible ways imaginable. Right at the start even, when our characters get involved in a little "game."
Maybe I am a huge softie, but when we first meet Victor and Beatrice, who had been staring at each other across from their respective apartments, I felt very emotional about a specific gesture in the scene. There's a bit of a slow buildup, but that is suddenly dashed when we find out why Beatrice has really been watching Victor. Turns out she is need of a bit of revenge, and she has some proof of something that could get Victor into a lot of trouble. As the plot progresses, these two seem to develop genuine feelings for one another. Victor lost something precious to him, and both could understand the need to make those responsible for their pain, pay.
My chief beefs with the film stem around a few things.
First, Farrell... well, I hope he deliberately looked like he was staring into the distance all the time. I guess he had that thousand- yard-stare because of his family and his hopes to avenge them at all costs, but Farrell left me flat. Noomi Rapace was OK, but I liked her much better in Prometheus. I found her Beatrice mostly annoying, although her back-story was heartfelt, and I understood how she felt. In my opinion, Terrence Howard is the winner here; his Alphonse, a truly disgusting sociopath.
Second, the love part was a hard sell for me because of the terms in which Victor and Beatrice become involved. But, then again, they did share a deep hurt, so they seemed to understand one another. Not the best love story ever, but good enough for a film.
Like many films, this one uses an object to convey some kind of meaning. I won't spoil it here, but I liked its use. There is also some nice use of cinematography.
It was fun and I felt my money was well spent.
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