Lyrical romance fails to show its age ... as yet

Rating: 8/10 (16 August 2016)

Twenty years on this film shows no sign of aging, undoubtedly helped by its historical setting (as we know, nothing dates faster than clothing and interiors). I think it gets nearly everything right. The cast is magnificent, the narrative approach highly effective, the cinematography and direction outstanding. The script is so intelligent - much could be said about the multiple examples of symmetry and contrast, between individuals, present and past, circumstances etc. One reason all the cast deliver such terrific performances is that they are given wonderful material to work with, as characters they are all fully fleshed out and convincing. To me it bears comparison with the epics of David Lean. I only have two criticisms and neither amounts to much. One is that, OK, it is sentimental, but I don't find it excessively so. The later cave of swimmers scenes are so moving! I love them. The second criticism is that there are various implausibilities, like Fiennes being able to make his way from a train track in the middle of nowhere to the place where the plane is held. And I don't think the characters would bump into each other quite as much as they do. Minor quibbles when you think of the sweep and scale of the movie, the intelligence, the warmth of the relationships and the immaculate use of the African and Italian settings.