Too much of everything

Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

Did you people see the same film I saw?

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

I just saw this movie last night off Showtime, and while I can commend the performances of the actors, all of whom I've admired their work over the years, I'm on the fence on this movie. It's basically a glorified soap opera, perhaps along the lines of a lot of Euro-films- especially French films..?? Annette Bening stars in what I see is actually based on the true story of a woman who meets a man with a striking resemblance to her late husband (Ed Harris). In the meantime, her neighbor (Robin Williams, in what I'm guessing was one of a handful of his last films-??) has a thing for her, but she's not into him. This has got to be the closest thing to a soap opera I've ever seen Williams in I must say. This movie really could've just been some Lifetime TV movie, again had it not been for the performances of it's stars. Amy Brenneman co-stars.

Review: This is another movie which I found hard to get into! It really takes ages for anything to happen and when it finally gets going, I didn't really understand what the point was. Its about a woman who tragically looses her husband in a swimming accident and 5 years later, she meets another man who looks exactly the same. She eventually realises that she is using the man to get over the death of her husband and the guy starts questioning why they were together. I found it a bit weird that the director used Ed Harris to play the ex-husband and the new boyfriend and the director made a weird choice of casting Robin Williams as the next door neighbour, who didn't have that many scenes. Anyway, I wasn't that impressed with the pace of the film but on the plus side, it isn't that long.   Disappointing!Round-Up: I can't remember the last time that I saw Annette Benning in a decent movie. She was quite good in American Beauty and Running With Scissors but she seems to be sticking to the same type of roles lately. I don't think that she has a wide range but she does have the ability to bring emotion to her roles. Ed Harris puts in his usually good performance but the script didn't push his ability. Robin Williams looked a bit lost throughout the film but it was good to see him in one of his last roles. Anyway, I was left feeling pretty empty when the film finished because I couldn't really remember anything amazing happening. Judging by the box office takings, I'm not alone with thinking that the director didn't make the more of a good cast.   Budget: N/A Worldwide Gross: $1.5millionI recommend this movie to people who are into their deep dramas about a lady who looses her husband in a tragic swimming accident and falls in love with someone who looks exactly like him. 3/10

Overall I loved this movie. Annette Bening is so poised and a natural who makes the story believable. Ed Harris does a decent job as well. For the most part it is a drama but there were some funny parts in it too. Yes the story is a bit far-fetched but for me it worked and it left me thinking which is always a good thing. There are themes of love, loss, grief, healing, second chances and renewal of lost passion. Loved the house she lived in! The use of artistry served as a wonderful backdrop for their relationship. I watched this twice and really enjoyed it. So good to see Annette Bening again! I wish she made more movies. Give this movie a chance. My mom liked it too.

I watched this movie last week and am still at a loss how to describe this movie. In good sense, of course. To be frank, I actually lived with the actors in the movie for its entire time. It is such a real and beautiful movie with great acting performances by Annette Benning (Nikki) and Ed Harris (Tom). The initial five minutes or so shows Nikki's reminiscences of the times she spent with her late husband and the deep connection they had to their house where she lives now, all alone - a clever paradigm to show how director Posin masters the art! Then one day she happens to see this strange man (Tom) at the museum she used to roam with her late husband. He is exactly the double of her late husband, shocked, she tries to find out who he is, and finally finds the man is an arts Tutor at a nearby university. She somehow stages an apparently accidental encounter in his classroom, makes a connection, start dating and the rest is just a love affair between a woman and a man. But how Posin tells us the story is very melancholic and truly poetic. Entire movie is filled with close-ups, cleverly reflecting the human emotions in different situations. Truly excellent performances by both Annette and Ed! Annette is a great actress anyway but I saw the best performance of Ed Harris in this movie. I felt some gaps in the story line, particularly as to why Nikki thinks she can always cover up why she loves Tom so dearly. You may wonder why she didn't get honest, if she really wanted Tom to be her lover. But her excellent acting performance overshadows any such flaw. I am so sad to see the movie did hopeless at the Box-office although this is a low budget movie. I only hope people will begin to appreciate rare gems like this movie if they want to enjoy a true cinematic experience.