Pedro Almodóvar is reunited with Penelope Cruz for Broken Embraces, his latest statement on people’s lives, loves and secrets. Mainly told in flashback (though 1994 onwards couldn’t look more 2009) we follow the history of blind writer Harry Caine and his liaison with Cruz. As always with Almodóvar things are not what they seem, but he spends too long with the set up and by the time of the films ending you would have worked out any twists long ago. The main problem is that while there are some good Hitchcockian touches here (and some De Palma), the storyline is too weak the last the over indulgent running time. There are also a few ambiguous scenes which will provide conversation at the end, but are also frustrating. Rumours of a three hour cut of the film mean that if that version ever sees the light of day we may get a clearer picture of what Almodóvar was trying to show us. In the meanwhile, whilst this film contains decent acting across the board, this can’t stop it from being a curious failure
The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
A nice concept, but an uneven approach and a slow finish means this drags when it should intrigue. Rating: 5/10.
No comments:
Post a Comment