Since this is a D. Day-Lewis/PTA project, it was labelled as an "elegant masterpiece". On a more prosaic level, the moral of the story could be that no matter how fastidious and sophisticated a man is, he is still a man following his - so to speak - "Woodcock".
DDL is Reynolds Woodcock (a surname that reads as a joke), the revered couturier of London high society. Afflicted by a severe case of OCD and a confirmed bachelor, Woodcock is used to take in lovers and muses to discard them when fed up, assisted by the equally icy, spinster sister Cyril.
His clothes fit perfectly his personality, his style being austere and sinister, because of stiff tailoring in dark colours and silhouettes that reminded me of Disney's evil witches..
His new muse is Alma, a foreign waitress with no breasts (perfect for a model) who wants to dominate Reynolds life, even if she's well aware of his ways. She definitely objects to going back to obscurity once she gets discarded.
Other messages of the movie could be that even obsessive, domineering people want to let go and be dominated, or simply that Woodcock is getting old and tired of playing the same game. He wants to play a more dangerous one. Whatever it is, I wouldn't call it "love" on either side, but for sure these two creepy psychos are a perfect match.
The plot moves at snail pace and there are more silences and "meaningful glances" than actual dialougues. However, I liked it more than I expected and Krieps, as the enigmatic Alma, pulls off a difficult part. In fact, I enjoyed her acting better than DDL.
I regret he chose this weird role as his last and certainly not most memorable one, but I applaude him for choosing to retire, which is what lots of actors should do before becoming parodies of themselves. Shame his goodbye came with such a vapid movie.
DDL is Reynolds Woodcock (a surname that reads as a joke), the revered couturier of London high society. Afflicted by a severe case of OCD and a confirmed bachelor, Woodcock is used to take in lovers and muses to discard them when fed up, assisted by the equally icy, spinster sister Cyril.
His clothes fit perfectly his personality, his style being austere and sinister, because of stiff tailoring in dark colours and silhouettes that reminded me of Disney's evil witches..
His new muse is Alma, a foreign waitress with no breasts (perfect for a model) who wants to dominate Reynolds life, even if she's well aware of his ways. She definitely objects to going back to obscurity once she gets discarded.
Other messages of the movie could be that even obsessive, domineering people want to let go and be dominated, or simply that Woodcock is getting old and tired of playing the same game. He wants to play a more dangerous one. Whatever it is, I wouldn't call it "love" on either side, but for sure these two creepy psychos are a perfect match.
The plot moves at snail pace and there are more silences and "meaningful glances" than actual dialougues. However, I liked it more than I expected and Krieps, as the enigmatic Alma, pulls off a difficult part. In fact, I enjoyed her acting better than DDL.
I regret he chose this weird role as his last and certainly not most memorable one, but I applaude him for choosing to retire, which is what lots of actors should do before becoming parodies of themselves. Shame his goodbye came with such a vapid movie.