If you don't understand before you watch it, that this is an anthology film, you'll be bewildered and perhaps disappointed. It's a collection of short vignettes, each one making an impression of mood, and sometimes advancing the plot of one or more of the others. Actually the "plot" or "plots" are not meant to be the point of this film. In fact, a heavy plot would have gotten in the way of the dramatic performances; beautiful cinematography; lovely score; and tightly written, mood-setting dialogue.
Director Fernando Meireller and screenwriter Peter Morgan did an excellent job of efficiently setting the mood in each of the vignettes -- there is no extra padding where its not needed and they take the time to develop the mood when the scene requires it. And the acting is nearly flawless -- by the veterans and newcomers alike. Within the confines of these short scenes, they were able to project the genuine depth and complexity of their characters and the circumstances they found themselves in.
Hopkins has a range and depth like no other, but this was right in his sweet spot -- it doesn't get any better. And Jude Law was able to almost instantly convey the duality of a confident, competent businessman struggling in a vulnerable, unfamiliar situation. Astounding performances!
Connections between the vignettes are less about the common characters among them or story continuity, and more about a common theme. Each of these involve serendipity, opportunity, risk, and capricious decisions. Since sexual encounters frequently involve these elements (primarily illicit sex), most of the vignettes (but not all) include that theme.
As good as the film is, it's still missing something, some cohesion -- even for an anthology it's pretty loose. At least eight EP's were involved in the project, plus a few other co-producers, and many veteran actors. I can't help but to wonder if each of them were doled out a scene or vignette to put hands on.
Another issue I have with the film is the use of jump cuts. By 2015, when this movie was released, that technique had already become trite. I don't see why filmmakers feel a need to try to adopt these faddish techniques, like the jerk-zoom or shaky hand-held shots. These techniques are used by new-medium amateurs and then incumbent artists feel a need to compete, so they plop these into their films. It reminds me of the way that impressionist painters in the late 19th century began mis-framing their subjects because that's how they looked in the new medium of still photography. They felt threatened by that new medium and thought they had to adopt that effect in order to compete. Well that fad (mis-framing) didn't last long in painting (although it's still sometimes used in photography). In any case, incumbent filmmakers shouldn't feel they need to plop these effects into their projects just to try to compete with the newcomers. It makes their work look dated after a few years. In this film, the jump-cuts were inappropriately used in a way that made it look like the editors were just using the technique to try to get the best morsels of acting from multiple takes into the final cut. It wasn't worth it.
These are minor flaws, though, and overall this film is well worth the time, especially if you go into it knowing that it's a thematic, mood-setting anthology and not just a storyteller.
Director Fernando Meireller and screenwriter Peter Morgan did an excellent job of efficiently setting the mood in each of the vignettes -- there is no extra padding where its not needed and they take the time to develop the mood when the scene requires it. And the acting is nearly flawless -- by the veterans and newcomers alike. Within the confines of these short scenes, they were able to project the genuine depth and complexity of their characters and the circumstances they found themselves in.
Hopkins has a range and depth like no other, but this was right in his sweet spot -- it doesn't get any better. And Jude Law was able to almost instantly convey the duality of a confident, competent businessman struggling in a vulnerable, unfamiliar situation. Astounding performances!
Connections between the vignettes are less about the common characters among them or story continuity, and more about a common theme. Each of these involve serendipity, opportunity, risk, and capricious decisions. Since sexual encounters frequently involve these elements (primarily illicit sex), most of the vignettes (but not all) include that theme.
As good as the film is, it's still missing something, some cohesion -- even for an anthology it's pretty loose. At least eight EP's were involved in the project, plus a few other co-producers, and many veteran actors. I can't help but to wonder if each of them were doled out a scene or vignette to put hands on.
Another issue I have with the film is the use of jump cuts. By 2015, when this movie was released, that technique had already become trite. I don't see why filmmakers feel a need to try to adopt these faddish techniques, like the jerk-zoom or shaky hand-held shots. These techniques are used by new-medium amateurs and then incumbent artists feel a need to compete, so they plop these into their films. It reminds me of the way that impressionist painters in the late 19th century began mis-framing their subjects because that's how they looked in the new medium of still photography. They felt threatened by that new medium and thought they had to adopt that effect in order to compete. Well that fad (mis-framing) didn't last long in painting (although it's still sometimes used in photography). In any case, incumbent filmmakers shouldn't feel they need to plop these effects into their projects just to try to compete with the newcomers. It makes their work look dated after a few years. In this film, the jump-cuts were inappropriately used in a way that made it look like the editors were just using the technique to try to get the best morsels of acting from multiple takes into the final cut. It wasn't worth it.
These are minor flaws, though, and overall this film is well worth the time, especially if you go into it knowing that it's a thematic, mood-setting anthology and not just a storyteller.
