User Reviews

This is a drama/mystery film which features themes including obsession, emotional breakdown and harassment. It is quite a sad film, with a philosophical feel to it, or so I thought at first. Its one of those films which depicts a situation which must be hard for anyone who happens to be passing by, to observe and take in - obviously its difficult to go in to many details about it for risk of giving spoilers. Suffice to say, I found myself wondering how I'd react if I'd been there, what could have been done differently to potentially lead to an alternative scenario and the like. Quite early on, it features camerawork depicting the main characters in bed from above (filmed from above i.e. down from the bedroom ceiling), with the camera going slowly around in circles, which is somewhat dizzying and claustrophobic. It also features stringed instruments and piano based instrumentals, sounding a little like someone on a tightrope - a tense, volatile situation, so it made me feel a bit edgy and unsure what may happen next. There is a definite unsettling feel to it, almost like with Hitchcock's thrillers...a bit of a slow burn type feel to it. I thought the plot was intriguing - not particularly predictable. The film is based on a novel by Ian McEwan but it isn't one I've personally read, so I can't comment on how true an adaptation it is, comparing film to novel. In a sense im glad I hadn't read the book, as it meant I was even less aware of the main aspects of the plot. Cast wise, the main character Joe is played by Daniel Craig (aka James Bond, for now anyway). There isn't a great deal of background information given to him, we only see him as a husband and teacher, although he does do well at portraying someone struggling to come to terms with a previous event. He is quite thoughtful/tight lipped and not keen on opening up about things. Meanwhile, Samantha Morton plays his wife, Claire, a loving and worried wife. Rhys Ifans plays Jed, a mysterious man who seems to know what went on and who Joe seemingly keeps bumping into - he does very well in his role as a person with an obsessive personality. Bill Nighy also appears, as Robin, who Claire uses to make a sculpture of (as is her line of work). The tension between Joe and Claire is relatively palpable but I did feel frustrated that we weren't given a bit more background information on them - all we know is the event they got caught up in, at the very start of the film. It is definitely a mysterious film, both sounding and looking rather mysterious, in a spooky sort of sense. The plot pace is a bit slow but in the case of this particular story, I thought it was necessary to be a bit slowly paced, with it being a bit of a slow burner. The questions it raises is what kept me intrigued to keep watching, to see what happened next. Content wise, the film contains frequent strong language and some instances of moderate violence. As I've already mentioned, it has quite a tense and unsettling feel to it for most of the film and so it could be perhaps slightly distressing to younger viewers, although it isn't so much a fast paced, horror style film but rather a slow burning characted based drama/thriller, so it may or may not frighten younger people. It has been given a 15 rating in the UK due to this. I suppose you could argue that its a bit pretentious, with the main characters being seemingly comfortable middle class types, with decent, presumably high earning jobs and as there's little in the way of background info., you could wonder why we should care particularly about what happens to them, although I feel that the plot is one that would work relatively well regardless of the characters backgrounds. I didn't feel particularly nonchalant about Joe - if anything I felt sorry for him because of what happens but I suppose some people may feel a bit disinterested in the characters, due to a lack of background information as I say. I also felt the ending was a bit frustrating, as it didn't really answer all of the questions I had as a viewer and it seemed a bit of a cliffhanger to me, so I wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. Yes, I suppose I would recommend this film overall as it features a good use of music and camerawork, has an intriguing plot and some decent performances, particularly from Rhys Ifans. However, the lack of extra character info./detail and a not proper ending will likely put some people off. Its a decent enough watch but its by no means perfect, so its a cautious recommendation from me.