An interminable complex dirge

Rating: 4/10 (24 February 2007)

I know that this is a well-reviewed movie, but sad to say, I did not like it. It simply tried to cover so many things. There were so many supporting characters (Robert de Niro, Alec Baldwin, Michael Gambon, Joe Pesci, etc) who seem to indistinctively blend into each other. There were too many subplots going on, and they were not shown in sequence. I know I should get used to this film technique by now. However, since the main character Edward Sr. (Matt Damon) did not age physically throughout the movie, it was more confusing. You know that more than 20 years have passed since Damon's son Edward Jr. was shown from his childhood to his wedding day. But when the son was an adult (played by Eddie Redmayne) already, Damon still looked like an elder brother. Angelina Jolie looked hopelessly miscast and uncomfortable as the wife.
The film was very slow-paced, it felt like it was never going to end. It just went on and on, jumping from the 40s to the 60s featuring Edward Sr. and various characters in his life. There were only sporadic interesting subplots that catch your attention, but they were few and far between. The only likable character it seems is hearing-impaired girlfriend Laura (played by Tammy Blanchard). There was that very original scene on an airplane with Edward Jr.'s fiancÃ©e. And the interesting CSI-like investigation of a piece of film, done with period technology.
But as a whole, for me, this whole movie felt like an interminable complex dirge--very draining to watch and not worth the long 167 minutes of time spent on it.