This Film Is Not For Everybody. Watch At Your Own Risk.

Rating: 6/10 (16 June 2019)

I was angry while watching this film. By the end, I had calmed down. I found the end very predictable (as I had actually predicted the ending about halfway through the film). In retrospect, the reason I was angry was because I knew I had been tricked into watching one of those films that, in 2019, we are not allowed to criticize for fear of not being politically correct. And, I had criticisms.
My original title for this review was "The Story Of A Selfish Tranny", because that IS this story. This is a tale about one person's journey to a new identity and the cost to be paid by his wife. To any free-thinking person, not clouded by self-interest or political agendas, Alicia Vikander ('Gerda') is the sympathetic character that drives the narrative of this film - not her transsexual husband/wife. Gerda's struggle of losing her husband is the theme of this film - not the theme of gender identification.
Vikander is great in everything she does and this film is no exception. In fact, she is so good that I hated watching this story. The camera work is top-notch and the settings in old European buildings were fun to watch. Of coarse, James Bond films have good camera work in old European buildings too, and the Bond girls actually have all of their lady parts from birth...
If you choose to watch this, have a better reason than I did; I only watched this because I wanted to earn the IMDB badge for reviewing all of the 2016 Academy Award Nominees. This is a good film but not a great film, and there are better films that will leave you happier for having watched them.
RealReview Posting Scoring Criteria:
Acting - 1/1;
Casting - 0.5/1;
Directing - 1/1;
Story - 1/1;
Writing/Screenplay - 1/1;
Total Base Score = 4.5
Modifiers (+ or -):
Authentic Location Shooting: +1;
Standout Performances: +1 ( Alicia Vikander );
Believability/Consistency: -0.5 (The lead actor role should have been rewritten and softened, as well as re-cast with a more attractive actor/actress);
Total RealReview Rating: 6