Totally Captivating

Rating: 10/10 (4 February 2010)

I have had this film on my radar since it won the Oscar lo these many years. It is described as romantic drama and the sound of it turned me off. Now that I've seen it, I know why it was so highly thought of. Those who criticize it seem to have two axes to grind. It's too long and the characters are unlikeable. I never thought for a moment that the film was too long; I didn't even notice the length. As for the characters, they are what they are, incredibly complex. Throw people into the mess of war and they don't behave "properly." This is a movie about undying love and the reality of conflict. We continue to fight wars despite the toll they produce. Human beings aren't satisfied with being the chosen species, they have to go about taking that from others. I know this sounds simplistic. Of course, wars need to be fought, but the price is great. Yes the main characters are selfish and passionate and don't look back very well. People to cheat and divorce and act on baser instincts, but the movie lets us know why their motives are. Sometimes I think that people would like a cotton candy presentation of life. Well, that's not art. Art gets at the guts of what we are and presents it to us, even if we don't like it. I thought Fiennes character was at times a total ass. He took and didn't give back. He catalogued his life inside a copy of Herodotus, creating a scrapbook of his existence. There are also our peripheral characters. Kip and Hana who are also victims of war, and the Dafoe character who hasn't lost as much but is marked for life. Everyone grows, even in the faith of death, and the spirit lives on. This is one marvelous film.