novelle
If you strip away all the romantic trappings of destiny conspiring to bring two soul mates together, this remains a tawdry tale of adultery between an English architect and an American businesswoman. One is married for ten years and the other on the brink of her wedding. Jaglom does his best to garner sympathy for the two lovers. It is not their fault that they lie and cheat but fate that keeps throwing them together. Destiny's hand is revealed in a reoccurring theme song, numerous chance encounters, and a mysterious broach. For good measure, he even throws in a supernatural element. The lovers never seem to express any genuine guilt or skepticism. They are just in a constant state of amazement and are as dumbfounded as the audience at the ridiculousness of the movie's script. Just as one of the lovers begins to exhibit some misgivings, Vanessa Redgrave as the wise sage of "seize the day" theory gives a resounding speech about "jumping into the river of life." Another false note was the dogma-style hand-held camera technique which gives a gritty realism that is jarring to the fairy tale like story the director so desperately wants to sell. By the end, instead of cheering on the lovers my sympathies were with their discarded partners.
evanpelt
This is a love story with more truth than is comfortable sometimes.
I think most of us have either loved two people at once or had to decide whether we should stay or leave a relationship. That struggle is what this movie is about. Stay with what is comfortable or follow your heart.This movie is a bit uneven, sometimes pulling you in so deeply that you can hardly breathe, then in the very next scene you will feel like you are watching a documentary. You feel you know how it will end one moment, and the next you are uncertain. The film takes you back and forth on so many levels. I think that's the point of the movie's structure really -- the watcher is pulled one way and then the other, just like the people in the movie.We all have to make choices, do you want to follow your heart, no matter where it takes you and accept the uncertainty that goes with it, or do you stay with the comfortable stability of the known?A powerful movie. If you have a chance to see it, go for it. I would recommend seeing it alone to get the full impact. Commercials and chatter would ruin the mood.
minusone
I must admit, I only saw the first 20 minutes, and the last 5 minutes. The plot was SO predictable. Ten minutes in, I asked my fellow viewer (who had seen it) does X happen and Y turn out to be Z? And I was right 100%.It was, without mincing words, awful.Specifically, the score was horrific and made me laugh at points. The acting of the main character, Dana, was one-dimensional -- she went around with this dull, "what the hell is going on" look on her face.But the worst part was the vomit-inducing camera work. Scenes start with a medium two shot, and then zoom into one character, pan left, and then zoom out again to a two shot. It looked like the camera operator and director were having a great time playing with the zoom button on their dad's new camcorder.If you want to see some sickly sweet love story, find something with Karen Valentine on Lifetime.
Bridget-16
This was one of the most romantic movies I've ever seen. The story is fascinating, beginning with the conversation at the cafe in Jerusalem with Dana and the mystery woman, through Dana's search in Paris, to the White Cliffs of Dover. To me, this movie is hope for women that there is one person out there who is truly meant for them and sometimes you are lucky enough to find that one person, as Dana was. The music was so fitting and made me weepy at times. I was really blown away at the ending, because I hadn't expected it, but it was so fitting. The final shot of the film says it all for me. Henry Jaglom and Victoria Foyt are truly the new wave of film makers and her beauty is extraordinary. As soon as the movie was over I wanted to watch it again.
AD
