Much too dull, and much too drawn out

Rating: Null/10 (18 January 2009)

I saw the trailer for "Revolutionary Road" while at the cinema for a different film, and I must stress that, the trailer alone had me blown away -- the potential of the story, the cast, even the beautiful Nina Simone piece in the background. Unfortunately the film did not live up to that beautifully crafted trailer but instead left me disappointed and empty.
Let me say, though, that the cast was so remarkable, and of course Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio have an excellent and believable chemistry. Winslet delivers a wonderful performance, as did DiCaprio, although I must admit her performance overshadowed his by a long shot. Although I felt that DiCaprio was superb in his more intense scenes, other times when he was just playing a "normal guy" he was rather dull and almost corny. I felt that he didn't know how to act like a "guy from the 50s", and was left torn between two directions.
Secondly, I felt that the film was much too drawn out, and often during scenes it felt repetitious. There was nothing new or interesting between long periods of time, in terms of -- well -- everything. The dialog was the same, the character's reactions to each other were the same, even the settings and scenery never changed. When there's nothing interesting, I don't understand how as the audience we should be -- well -- interested.
I give this film a 5/10 for a great cast and fine acting. But otherwise, I did not enjoy it. Although there was substance, it just wasn't enough. It was much too dull, and much too drawn out.