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I somehow put this off for ages, maybe because Tom Cruise is such a charming character. But I saw it yesterday, and I like the setting, the general plot (with a strong 4th quarter, too) … I like the way mystery and intrigue is introduced. In general, it reminded me why I love sci fi. Would love to remove half a star, though. The very end leaves me wanting a clearer resolution, and it feels vaguely “generic” all over the place. You know, the way “12 Monkeys” or “Fight Club” doesn’t. What do I mean? I think some characters just fulfill a role, all that “love interest” / “lost son” stuff feels soo generic, this could be a prequel to “Shutter Island”. I don’t feel a writer “putting something he HAS to say” into these parts of the story. It feels more like “Ok, we need a strong motivation here and here, and some reflection here. Done!” It is a 2 1/2 hour movie. Let the characters say and do things because they want to, or not because it is needed right now by the plot. The main characters literally have no interests, no odd curves or wrinkles. I don’t know why, but basic cold hard facts about tragic characters somehow reduce the impact. Show me a character and say “this one is very very sad”, it doesn’t work. Let me see him/her laugh about something in a weird way, flirt with somebody, try to find a new passion and fail etc. You know, the way suffering characters do. The most unique character, Agatha, stays SADLY underdeveloped. I would have basically given her the rest of the movie, she would have deserved it. The entire movie could have secretly been about her. But it isn’t. As a movie in general: 5 stars. 1/2 star off because of the missing “soul”, and 1/2 off because I think I have discovered the weakest John Williams score. |
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