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Day 197: November 13th, 2010
Never Let Me Go
I wanted a bit more from this one...
I honestly expected this film to be a lot more emotional than what it ended up being, much like Conviction. I went in knowing what the children were, so I don't know if that had any impact on my initial reactions and thoughts. My main problem with it though, and this might be the fault of the source material, was the relationship between Ruth and the other two characters, Cathy and Thomas. I think that if her relationship to the other two were different, I would have had a more emotional connection to the characters and their problem. We see that Cathy likes Thomas when they are kids. We also know that Ruth knows this and she 'steals' him away. Then we are suppose to all of a sudden jump on the Thomas/Cathy love wagon at the end when they have been together for such a small amount of time? I would have rather had Thomas and Cathy get together when they were kids and have Ruth be in love with him too, but neither Thomas or Cathy knew. This would create more of an emotional connection to Ruth, which was missing for me the entire movie. Also, when they go to declare their love, it would feel more genuine and not an excuse to live longer.
Sorry, that was my biggest problem with the film, minor complaints come in because a lot of it was dragging on and it seems to be rather slow. Despite having some terrific performances and great direction. Andrew Garfield continues to impress me, here he plays Thomas as the socially awkward, emotionally unbalanced kid who doesn't really grow up. Carey Mulligan is the anchor of the film, we follow her and feel her pain for both her friends. Keira Knightley gives a good performances as Ruth, the bitchy friend. Her latter scenes are more heartbreaking enough to forgive her for whatever she did prior, even if she is unsure about her actions.
The very thought of your existence is in question here, for these characters. They are suppose to do one thing and one thing only, they can't live normal lives. The story takes place in an alternate universe, so for me that immediately has some kind of disconnection from the beginning. I kept wondering why none of the characters would run. Sure, as kids they are threatened with horror stories, but they are somewhat free when they are older. The bracelets they wear are only shown and never really explained. You are left to assume that those are the things keeping them from running, but this isn't Blade Runner.
A very unbalanced film of emotions. For me, all the right ingredients are there for a depressing movie, but there is that disconnect, which is enough to make it not seem depressing at all. I know I should be sad for these characters and I am, only a little though. I should be upset and full of tears, but I'm not.
Never Let Me Go
I wanted a bit more from this one...
I honestly expected this film to be a lot more emotional than what it ended up being, much like Conviction. I went in knowing what the children were, so I don't know if that had any impact on my initial reactions and thoughts. My main problem with it though, and this might be the fault of the source material, was the relationship between Ruth and the other two characters, Cathy and Thomas. I think that if her relationship to the other two were different, I would have had a more emotional connection to the characters and their problem. We see that Cathy likes Thomas when they are kids. We also know that Ruth knows this and she 'steals' him away. Then we are suppose to all of a sudden jump on the Thomas/Cathy love wagon at the end when they have been together for such a small amount of time? I would have rather had Thomas and Cathy get together when they were kids and have Ruth be in love with him too, but neither Thomas or Cathy knew. This would create more of an emotional connection to Ruth, which was missing for me the entire movie. Also, when they go to declare their love, it would feel more genuine and not an excuse to live longer.
Sorry, that was my biggest problem with the film, minor complaints come in because a lot of it was dragging on and it seems to be rather slow. Despite having some terrific performances and great direction. Andrew Garfield continues to impress me, here he plays Thomas as the socially awkward, emotionally unbalanced kid who doesn't really grow up. Carey Mulligan is the anchor of the film, we follow her and feel her pain for both her friends. Keira Knightley gives a good performances as Ruth, the bitchy friend. Her latter scenes are more heartbreaking enough to forgive her for whatever she did prior, even if she is unsure about her actions.
The very thought of your existence is in question here, for these characters. They are suppose to do one thing and one thing only, they can't live normal lives. The story takes place in an alternate universe, so for me that immediately has some kind of disconnection from the beginning. I kept wondering why none of the characters would run. Sure, as kids they are threatened with horror stories, but they are somewhat free when they are older. The bracelets they wear are only shown and never really explained. You are left to assume that those are the things keeping them from running, but this isn't Blade Runner.
A very unbalanced film of emotions. For me, all the right ingredients are there for a depressing movie, but there is that disconnect, which is enough to make it not seem depressing at all. I know I should be sad for these characters and I am, only a little though. I should be upset and full of tears, but I'm not.