Too confusing, too long, too confusing, too long, too confusing . . .

Rating: 4/10 (29 January 2018)

I am an intelligent man. I enjoy movies that make me think, movies that I can enjoy repeatedly, movies that I recommend heartily, and movies that make me a better person.
This was none of those. It was just too long and too confusing, with several different plotlines at different times and different places, not to mention different genres, all trying to weave together. I watched half of it one night and went to bed wondering, "What on earth is this? Where is it going? What does the director expect of me? Why is there no clear direction in the movie? How do all these different threads link up?"
When I watched the second half the next day, it became slightly more understandable, but my enjoyment was seriously diminished by the director's insistence on using the same actors to play different characters over different time periods in different places. WHY? WHY? WHY? This just confused me and made me wonder whether these characters were linked in some strange way that I should be able to see but couldn't. As a result, I only watched the movie with half my attention in parts.
To its credit, I must say that the movie is beautifully filmed, costumed, set and acted. I just wish I knew what it means.
In the end, I can only say that the movie is a grossly over-long, over-complex testament to the very simple idea of cause and effect. This action causes that action. There are elements of the struggle for freedom in there as well but they are overshadowed by this very simple idea. Three hours of screen time to basically say, "This action caused that action."
You have been warned. Watch it and get your brain scrambled. Three hours of beautiful confusion.