CLOSING THE RING
CLOSING THE RING |
 |
War-time love is thwarted when a US plane crashes in Ireland. Fifty years later and the true story begins to emerge. | score 2 |
moviereview rates films from 1 (unwatchable) to 5 (unmissable) |
| FIND A MOVIEREVIEW |
| Cast Shirley MacLaine, Neve Campbell, Christopher Plummer, Pete Postlethwaite Director Richard Attenboroguh Screenwriter Peter Woodward Country UK / Canada Rating / Running Time M / 119 minutes Australian Release March 2008 Official Site (c) moviereview
2006-2008
ABN 72 775 390 361 |
A
quick count revealed principle cast and crew have eleven Oscar wins and
nominations between them. Eleven! So what went so horribly wrong? Most
of the problem rests with inattentive direction of a lacklustre script.
There’s a moment when Neve Campbell, pushed to the limits by the
absurd behaviour of her mother screams and walks away. We know exactly
how she feels. We’re there every step of the way. Michigan, 1941 and romance blossoms into a secret wedding. Shortly afterwards, Teddy is called to serve in Europe and never returns. Ethel-Ann boxes her emotions, remarries their close friend Chuck, and no one speaks of the war again. Forward fifty years and the past comes crashing in when their wedding ring is unearthed in Ireland. In embracing the chick-flick, Attenborough turns in an old-fashioned film in all respects. The structure is customary, pedestrian. Cinematography is firm but unsurprising. A well-seasoned cast trot out customary performances. While MacLaine’s oft-seen cantankerousness raises a smile, she fails to engage beyond a mid-film meltdown. Unable to breath much life into Peter Woodward’s laboured script, Attenborough drags characters through an increasingly preposterous series of revelations and reactions, leaving the cast precious little room to move. From the cheesy Americana beginning to a deeply irrational close in the middle of the Irish troubles, coincidence bounces up and down the ages like a Jeffrey Archer novel. No wonder Neve was beside herself. Worst of all, Woodward fails to say anything coherent about the wars that feature so heavily in the story. As a mere backdrop, it’s a pointless and irritating association that underlines how far from the mark he and Attenborough has dropped this film. // COLIN FRASER |