Directed by Martin Scorsese.
Review: 6/10
Pros: Great performances by the most part. All the female supporting actresses (Michelle Williams, Emily Mortimer, Patricia Clarkson) are favorites of mine and all delivered strong performances. Jackie Earle Haley, Ben Kingsley, and Mark Ruffalo were also excellent. I’ve never been the biggest fan of Leonardo DiCaprio, but I thought he was decent here, but definitely not his strongest performance (Revolutionary Road was brilliant). The flashback dream sequences contained brilliantly beautiful imagery. Production design and location was wonderful. Even the editing I’ve heard many complaints about works in this film. Its jerkiness and jump cuts enhances the emotions Leonardo’s character goes through.
Cons: I’ve been told by others that this film had a twist ending of sorts. Knowing this, I immediately began searching for clues throughout. About halfway through I began thinking the film was trying to convince me what the ending would be, but would completely flip that around. It turns out that the ending I thought before he even arrived on the island became true (for the most part, since the ending remains open ended). This was a major letdown. Much of the story felt messy and I couldn’t stay attached to Leonardo’s character’s motives as much as I would have wanted to. I absolutely despised the score and found it irritating.
Thoughts?
