Sunday, May 1, 2011

Elegy (7/10)

Ben Kingsley is one of the best and most versatile actors ever. Mad dog gangsters, inspiring pacifists, quite accountants, strict fathers and mysterious doctors. He's done it all and now he's plays a womanizing teacher, a Mr. David Kepesh. The women he gets are his college students, he waits until after grades are in to be safe. His next prey of sorts is a cuban american student Consuela (Penelope Cruz). However unlike all his other students (except one, Patricia Clarkson plays a student who still visits him years later for no-strings sex) she returns after they sleep together and the two begin a relationship.He came looking for sex but got more than he bargained for. David has a formula for the rest of his life and it's all changed by someone who will be very special for him.

Their relationship isn't whats interesting, it's the wit that the characters bring. For a movie that seems so elegant and poetic at points it seems slow at others. Maybe it was lack of interest, but it's rather unexciting at points. However when it is good... it's beyond that, it's fantastic. However that mix makes things just decent, not favoring great or bad. The supporting cast (Patricia Clarkson, Dennis Hopper and Peter Sarsgaard) all play well to support the change we see in David. Each character has a full life of their own, but still act as almost different personas of David. It's good, but slow progress may not be everyone's interest.

7/10
Recommendation: Like my last sentence, I liked it, but it's nothing great. Still worth a shot if your in for a thinker.

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