Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Trigger Warning(s): Scene of attempted rapeIt has been almost a year since I have last seen an Emily Browning movie, and while I could have certainly watched Pompei, I didn't want to since it seemed so bleh. However, with Summer in February I thought this was going to be a cute period drama, something which could work well for Browning since she seems destined, due to her porcelain doll looks, to be in quite a few British period dramas. But with her not having the best record when it comes to movies, at least with me, does this one continue the trend or break it?Characters & StoryAfter having a fight with her father about a man who was the perfect match for her, Florence (Emily Browning) runs away to live with her brother Joey (Max Deacon) in the pursuit of not just getting away from their father, but also to paint. And what better a place to end up for with the great AJ Munnings (Dominic Cooper) sharing the same circle as Joey, as well as Harold Knight (Shaun Dingwall), there are many possible teachers and mentors in town. Though it seems with Florence's beauty, these artist would prefer her to replace local model Dolly (Mia Austen) over really providing tutelage. So she has to force the point she came to learn to paint.However, in the pursuit of justifying her stay to her father, she ends up attracting two men. The first being AJ, the wild and passionate painter, and then Gilbert (Dan Stevens) who is this calm, cool, and collected military man. And while the film, at first, presents Florence as a girl who isn't looking for love, just good company, knowledge, and maybe someone to match wits with, she soon falls for one of these boys and the quality of the film falls with it.PraiseAs noted in the introduction, Browning certainly has the perfect look for a period drama. Add in the right amount of cheekiness she possesses in her voice, as well as a look which screams naivety, innocence, and perhaps privilege, and I think you have a prime candidate for a Jane Austen adaptation. However, in terms of this story, while Austen- esque sarcasm isn't on display, for the first 40 or so minutes Browning is quite a sight and her character Florence seems like someone who demands to be taken seriously. With this you are presented a rather interesting picture in which a woman seems to not mind male attention, even enjoys it a bit, but seems committed to becoming a better artist over anything else. Which, for me, I thought was a perfect direction for the film. Though with it being based on a true story, and set in the early 1900s, I should have knew it was too good to be true.CriticismIf just because, unfortunately, with Florence falling in love, or perhaps more so in great admiration, her story as an artist slips away as she ends up a love interest. One who seemingly picked the wrong man, slowly loses reason to draw, and becomes a bore to watch. Mostly due to all her wit, and any sense of moxy, just disappearing. Making the hour after she becomes married, at first, a bit interesting since we see her deal with insecurities and what not, but after a while things feel like they are just dragging on and it makes you wish what happened in those first 40 minutes still was going on rather than the mess you are left with.Overall: TV ViewingDespite rarely giving any Emily Browning film an overall positive review, I do remain a fan. Not just because I think she is attractive either, if anything I think it is because she certainly has talent, but the issue is she doesn't find films which are good throughout. They start off strong but once the drama starts to really kick in, usually the film falls apart. Which is what leads to the TV Viewing label for this film since the film started good, not strong but good, and I liked seeing Browning use her great ability to seem vulnerable, a bit cheeky, and certainly someone who could hold her own against not just the male gaze, but all the talent around her. However, once she got diminished to a love interest it was all downhill. Her life became about who her husband may have been with, her wondering if she made the right decision, and then her wanting to escape from her husband. All making for the type of drama done far too much for this film to not put any effort into trying to stand out and make things interesting.

It's beautifully acted and shot. Christopher Menaul, the director behind Belonging, Feast of July, Above Suspicion, 1st Night, Treatment and Punters, brings us this blob of nothingness. It's a true tale of love, liberty and scandal amongst the Edwardian artists' colony in Cornwall. I thought this film was fantastic in some ways and terrible in others. There's something for everyone here, though the two male leads were overcast. I refuse to totally dismiss this, because I find it quite engaging. The film's screenplay is tight and well-written, and worthy of praise. An intelligent script, with direction that does it justice. As a final rating, it receives 7 out of 10 from this reviewer.

If you are still mourning over Dan Stevens dying in Downton Abbey, here is a picture with the blond-haired, dreamy eyed Englishman. However, don't expect much when it comes to the story, except that Dan comes across pretty much the same as Matthew Crawley.Where do I begin? Hum, well, it's a period movie, apparently about a factual event. Dominic Cooper plays A. J. Munnings, a talented artist who went onto to be a famous English painter. Set on the Cornwall coast in England, it's a story of a group of artists who do nothing but paint. Dan Stevens, who plays Gilbert Evans, is not an artist, but a friend of A.J. and in the military.The story is a strange love triangle. Enter Florence Carter Wood, another young wannabe artist. She arrives in Cornwall to be with her brother and meets both A.J. and Gilbert. Gilbert quickly falls in love with her, but A.J. wins the spoils instead. However, the entire affair is nonsensical. Florence, who comes across as a pretty, young aristocratic woman, finds A.J. fascinating because of his talent. However, he has a dark side wherein he is moody, belligerent, and drinks too much. Even though his personality is well revealed before the wedding, she for some odd reason proceeds with the marriage as if she is helpless to do so otherwise. Of course, her decision reaps an unhappy life, while Gilbert broods over his loss of his true love.Since I don't want to give the "spoils" away on this plot, I'll keep my remaining comments minimal regarding the final outcome. The location on the Cornwall coast has spectacular scenery. There are a few unnecessary scenes of total frontal female nudity, which added absolutely no value to the story whatsoever. (Three of these individuals in Summer in February also starred in the 2008 BBC Sense & Sensibility - Dominic Cooper, who played Willoughby; Dan Stevens, who played Edward Ferrars; and Hattie Morahan, who played Elinor.) Unfortunately, I cannot come away with anything lasting about this movie. Though well acted, the story itself turned out to be a melodramatic affair that made no sense to me whatsoever. The only pleasure in it was seeing Dan Stevens once again in a familiar period piece.

I see the mean is 7.2 but IMDb has shown the rating as 5.2 ? This is one of the most underrated films in decent years. It was a great film from start to finish. Superb cinematography, an engaging storyline, 3 superb main acting performances and a wonderful score. It has not been a hit at the UK Box Office as very few cinema's ever showed it depriving the UK cinema going public of a real gem. Shame. It will in time become a cult classic and word of mouth from DVD and TV will ensure it will evertually gets the recognition it deserves.Go see, if you can find it on anywhere !