Astonishing at times, a lot of a very impressive Kingsley's scenes are stolen by a monumental Penelope Cruz, this is her finest work yet. Inexplicably 'Elegy' still isn't cut out to be a grand masterpiece, the instant Cruz vanishes from the screen the film's urgency slowly fades, only to return in the last couple of scenes when she does. What is grand about it are the dialogs, in particular in the first half of the film there are memorable lines galore, the second half holds some beauties as well: all the exchanges between Hopper and Kingsley are pure gold, as they scope women and talk about regrets and getting old. They're a pair of womanizers with an unusually precise ability of self-evaluation and display a moving honesty in that judging.
Other elements that stood out: the meditations about aging and monogamy, love and life, are very well done. The film tries very hard not to manipulate but instead observe and let the viewer do the thinking. It's very rare to find a movie that possesses such a quality.
Even the best script in the world makes for a lousy film without the actors to sell it, besides Cruz being a tad old for the role the casting is inspired, Patricia Clarkson also leaves an impression as Kingsley's ever-giving yet never-demanding lover, perhaps the only woman who ever understood him, it's a beautiful character and Clarkson portrays here with grace and dignity. It's about theme these actors got the opportunity to star in a film that deserves their talent, especially Kingsley hasn't done anything memorable in way too long.
For those among you who in the meantime have gotten the impression that 'Elegy' is just another depressing, humorless, grotesque excruciating drama, don't worry, you're way off. Except for the ending the film never gets preachy or alienates it's viewers through pretentious cinematography, unnatural dialog or a series of unrealistically dramatic scenes following one another from beginning to end.
If you'd look at the film, or the book, again in a couple of years it'll have considerably changed. As a youthful guy, reviewing a film about mortality, I can impossibly estimate how my perception will change as the years pass, but I suspect it'll become an even more interesting (yet probably more painful to watch) piece of art.
Don't miss this one!
Other elements that stood out: the meditations about aging and monogamy, love and life, are very well done. The film tries very hard not to manipulate but instead observe and let the viewer do the thinking. It's very rare to find a movie that possesses such a quality.
Even the best script in the world makes for a lousy film without the actors to sell it, besides Cruz being a tad old for the role the casting is inspired, Patricia Clarkson also leaves an impression as Kingsley's ever-giving yet never-demanding lover, perhaps the only woman who ever understood him, it's a beautiful character and Clarkson portrays here with grace and dignity. It's about theme these actors got the opportunity to star in a film that deserves their talent, especially Kingsley hasn't done anything memorable in way too long.
For those among you who in the meantime have gotten the impression that 'Elegy' is just another depressing, humorless, grotesque excruciating drama, don't worry, you're way off. Except for the ending the film never gets preachy or alienates it's viewers through pretentious cinematography, unnatural dialog or a series of unrealistically dramatic scenes following one another from beginning to end.
If you'd look at the film, or the book, again in a couple of years it'll have considerably changed. As a youthful guy, reviewing a film about mortality, I can impossibly estimate how my perception will change as the years pass, but I suspect it'll become an even more interesting (yet probably more painful to watch) piece of art.
Don't miss this one!