Criterion Challenge 2025 #9
Category: A film by a director whose work you have not seen before
I've been delaying watching this under the silly "It's old so will it really be good" thought, and it turns out that, yes, this is very good. I loved the energy of it, particularly in the first half.
I really want to love this movie but it almost feels like there are so many opposing plot ideas that never fully coalesce well enough. The visuals are amazing and the acting is good, though I didn't feel much chemistry between Swinton and Elba (though I feel that may be intentional).
Overall, I feel it needed to be a bit longer to flesh out its last act better.
While I enjoyed this movie, I wish I lied it more (though it might also work better for me on a second viewing)
