On the Other Hand...

Rating: 10/10 (22 December 2001)

Much as I enjoyed the books, I wasn't anxiously anticipating the movie. I wasn't expecting to like or dislike it. In other words, I had no bias heading in. In a nutshell, not only was the movie MUCH too long, but it ended awkwardly as it set up the second movie. I must have heard a half dozen people blurt out their disgust at the way the movie ended. That's not a bad thing from the standpoint that those people wanted more (or at least some sense of completion to the story.) I also felt like I watched the movie for 3 hours and didn't recieve fair payoff at the end although I'm sure it will come in time. I also felt the movie tried too hard to develop character through overt melodrama. The acting was good but it seemed everyone was trying too hard. The movie itself just seemed to be trying too hard. At the end of the film, I felt that while I enjoyed the beauty of the cinema, and it really is a wonderfully shot film, I was glad to be going home.

All that having been said, I do have one confession. I couldn't get the movie or the characters out of my head for the next two days. And if I'm still thinking about a movie 10 minutes after I've left the theatre, they've done something right! And so for this reason, I'll give the movie a 7.9 out of 10.