Does not get better as it progresses

Rating: 2/10 (22 March 2015)

My first thoughts after the movie were "this was what the fuss was all about?" Surely, I couldn't be the only person who thought this movie is being pretentious at its best/worst. On paper, the premise seems interesting, a washed out action movie star making a comeback to prove that he can act, but the movie is a letdown. That the central character is schizophrenic is clear five minutes into the movie, but what about the others? Their past, present and future does not evoke much curiosity, except perhaps Edward Norton's character. The acting is superb no doubt, but it's all for a lost cause. The stellar cast can only do so much when the script is a letdown. The single shot style and the loud drums are irritating and distracting. The movie ends with a lot of questions unanswered, where does the truth end and fantasy takes over? But by then, you no longer care. One star for the acting (Edward Norton especially) and the other for the bar scene involving the showdown between the "has been star" and the "theatre critic".