WTF?
I consider myself to have pretty sophisticated taste in movies, and I found this movie completely pointless. Could anyone perhaps explain why they liked it without implying that all I like are mindless Michael Bay movies?
shareCONTAINS SPOILERS!!!
I'll give it a try ( two Vodka/Tonics with Lime have given me courage).
The man is a talented technial designer but has endured a emotionally crushing marriage with the young and beautiful Caroline Dhavernas. He flees this disaster to try and rebuild himself and put his demons behind him.
Some small respite is achieved by spying on Julai Stiles in (what he may imagines) is the ideal relation of happiness he never had. As it turns out, this is not the case and Julia's character is troubled (if more innocent) than his. She breaks away from her superficially ideal lover and seeks out the voyeur and attaches herelf to him with frightening speed.
The twist is that his former wife is psychotically possessive and will go to any extent to extract revenge on him for leaving her. These actions leave a trail of emotional and physical desctruction in their wake. Our protaganist is pushed to the extreme (but does quite well, somewhat surprisingly).
The pressure that he comes to grip with is, VERY SADLY, too much for Julia's character. This was the saddest part of the film for me. Like a child destroyed by warring parents, she is undone by the tensions of the conspiracy.
In the end, "justice" is achieved but, is our man (even afer surviving the crisis) still locked in the same pain and doubt as the film started with?
Not a perfect film but, I was wrapped up in it. The atmosphere won't be for everyone but, the actors do a terrific job and the pacing is solid.
The problem with your synopsis is that the WIFE divorces the nutty dude, rendering your summary and the film itself pointless. The motives behind the wife and the boyfriend are not revealed or don't make sense.
shareTHat is probably where I got lost too! Just couldn't understand the wife's character? What was the relationship between her & the missing dude (Robert)? Was she out for revenge? but then how oculd that be, given she is the one who is divorcing him? Did she want him back & was trying all she deemed necessary to get him back? I am lost.
shareThe wife wanted to be back with him. She's giving him a lot of hints that she wants him back but he did not seemed to be receptive. She maybe a bit angry that he is not grovelling to her feet begging to be back with her.
shareThanks! I agree with kroyall to a certain degree (if memory serves correctly, the ex-wife did the leaving), but I don't think that invalidates your explanation, which I found to be more coherent than the movie itself. I think kroyall was on to something with the lack of motives with the ex-wife and the ex-boyfriend, but I think that could be chalked up to sloppy directing or screenwriting. As I understand it, this movie comes from a book, which I'm presuming went into greater detail on this. Still, I was intrigued throughout, but I guess I fall into the "atmosphere won't be for everyone crowd." I understand that every movie doesn't have to be about sunshine and happy endings, but this one just seemed like insult to injury. There are plenty of dark things that happen in our world every day. I don't particularly like watching a depiction of such without there being some point to tie it all together other than just a blanket appeal to poignancy.
shareI realize this is an old thread.....i read the book and I didn't get it either. I was hoping the movie might. Meh.
shareI agree. I quite liked it.
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