Tragic Love Story Indeed

Rating: 3/10 (7 November 2005)

This movie was a colossal disappointment for me. I enjoyed Romeo + Juliet tremendously and I really like Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman, so this seemed like a can't miss.
Unfortunately you could dive feet first into a puddle of this movie and not even get your socks wet. All the dialogue was contrived to find meaningful poetic snippets of great songs and compile them into one fluid love story. The idea has merit, but the execution was all wrong. The lines didn't tie together well and totally lacked the emotion of the songs themselves. This left little to no character development and almost no emotional attachments which should be important to a "tragic love story." Another problem I have is that a lot of the mystery is taken away in the opening monologue, not that that would be enough to wreck a movie, but in this case, there is no reason for it. So with the ending already decided you look to the actors to hold your interest and find yourself being even further let down. You hope the dialogue can at least carry some interest but that dies quickly too. I can't believe the hype for this movie, but then, I can't believe Britney Spears has sold millions of albums either. You can't trust the general public.
The filming, set-design and costumes are the only reason this film received any stars at all in my book. Brilliant colors, multiple crazy angles/cuts and wild sets however weren't enough to hold any interest.
I describe this movie as being liked by people that THINK they're artistic and creative but truly have no depth.