Watch it again, it's really good

Rating: 10/10 (18 September 2005)

When I first saw this movie years ago I thought it was boring, I couldn't understand it, it was confusing. But it was on t.v. last night and I watched the whole thing all the way through, and wondered why I dismissed such a well-crafted movie. The performances are wonderful, and the way the story weaves in and out from past to present, and from character to character, is amazing. In my case, the riches of this film weren't revealed on a single viewing, but I had to see it again years later. It's kind of like classical music, where you don't like it at first but after hearing it for awhile you appreciate the complexities of it and you start to appreciate your favorite pieces. Juliette Binoche is delightful, she seems so natural and relaxed that it's impossible to imagine that she is aware of a camera in the room filming her. And I think Ralph Fiennes's acting style suits this film perfectly; he's cold and distant through much of the movie, until the heart-wrenching ending when he returns to the cave. Anyone who doesn't cry when Hana is reading Katharine's dying words to the count must have a heart of stone.