There were some really amazing pieces to this movie: Both Michael Stahl-David (Dylan) & Zoe Kazan (Rebecca) were excellent casts, the concept had a really great metaphysical piece to it, and the romance was just right.
The reasons why I only gave it 6 out of 10 was mainly because of the useless role the doctor/husband (Phil) played and the lame attempt to dabble in the complexity of mental illness - I feel like the latter really detracted from the film.
Firstly, it seemed like the directors bit off more they could chew by adding that Rebecca had a mental health issue that was completely separate from the telepathic connection that her and Dylan had. The movie could have done without because there wasn't enough detail in the film to develop that piece of her character. There was no discussion about Rebecca's initial stay at the hospital except for that she was in there for 3 months and that she got better. I guess Rebecca having a history of mental illness makes it easier for Phil to throw her back into the institution when he hears a rumour that Rebecca allegedly cheated on him. I get that he 'runs' the hospital in town (which is pretty unconvincing given that he looks like he couldn't be more than 30 years old and barely looks old enough to be a resident), but there wasn't enough of a reason for him to convince a hospital to admit her.
I think the directors tried to help Phil's case by adding in a random psychologist/psychiatrist character who, just by meeting Rebecca a couple times, agrees with Phil that Rebecca has a mental illness due to her skidd-ish and nervous behaviour. This is a huge cause for concern, as no good-practicing psychiatrist would ever do that in real life. They essentially lock her up and feed her drugs without ever really diagnosing her with anything!
The movie didn't really show any reason for Phil to be with Rebecca other than that he is someone that likes power. He is verbally abusive, controlling, and doesn't seem to tolerate her or show any real affection towards her at all (he criticizes her outfits & style, doesn't let her drink or make her own decisions, dislikes her personality, tells her she 'embarrasses him'...). She seems more like a burden to him than anything else.
It seems that the director used Phil's character to rationalize Dylan & Rebecca's relationship to the audience. Unfortunately, the inconsistency of Phil's actions made for a really unrealistic character.
Overall, I really loved the concept of the film, the characters (Rebecca being a really complex and sweet character, and Dylan being trying to make an honest living and wanting to be a better person because of her influence). I really liked how the movie showed the impact of their presence in each other's lives. There was so much potential in this film, but the decisions with Phil's character ultimately made a movie that could have been amazing, only sub-par.
The reasons why I only gave it 6 out of 10 was mainly because of the useless role the doctor/husband (Phil) played and the lame attempt to dabble in the complexity of mental illness - I feel like the latter really detracted from the film.
Firstly, it seemed like the directors bit off more they could chew by adding that Rebecca had a mental health issue that was completely separate from the telepathic connection that her and Dylan had. The movie could have done without because there wasn't enough detail in the film to develop that piece of her character. There was no discussion about Rebecca's initial stay at the hospital except for that she was in there for 3 months and that she got better. I guess Rebecca having a history of mental illness makes it easier for Phil to throw her back into the institution when he hears a rumour that Rebecca allegedly cheated on him. I get that he 'runs' the hospital in town (which is pretty unconvincing given that he looks like he couldn't be more than 30 years old and barely looks old enough to be a resident), but there wasn't enough of a reason for him to convince a hospital to admit her.
I think the directors tried to help Phil's case by adding in a random psychologist/psychiatrist character who, just by meeting Rebecca a couple times, agrees with Phil that Rebecca has a mental illness due to her skidd-ish and nervous behaviour. This is a huge cause for concern, as no good-practicing psychiatrist would ever do that in real life. They essentially lock her up and feed her drugs without ever really diagnosing her with anything!
The movie didn't really show any reason for Phil to be with Rebecca other than that he is someone that likes power. He is verbally abusive, controlling, and doesn't seem to tolerate her or show any real affection towards her at all (he criticizes her outfits & style, doesn't let her drink or make her own decisions, dislikes her personality, tells her she 'embarrasses him'...). She seems more like a burden to him than anything else.
It seems that the director used Phil's character to rationalize Dylan & Rebecca's relationship to the audience. Unfortunately, the inconsistency of Phil's actions made for a really unrealistic character.
Overall, I really loved the concept of the film, the characters (Rebecca being a really complex and sweet character, and Dylan being trying to make an honest living and wanting to be a better person because of her influence). I really liked how the movie showed the impact of their presence in each other's lives. There was so much potential in this film, but the decisions with Phil's character ultimately made a movie that could have been amazing, only sub-par.