On U List of Movie Reviews
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Up at the Villa (2000)
Rate:
6
Viewed:
1/21
1/21:
After liking Angels & Insects and
The Blood Oranges so much, I sought Up at the Villa, and
the results were decidedly mixed.
The first mistake is Sean Penn who's clearly miscast. Regardless of his star power, he doesn't belong in pictures
like this. They require a certain acting pedigree in order to assimilate into the period, and the British
thespians are often successful in doing so. Unfortunately, Sean Penn doesn't have what it takes; more attention was
spent on his perfect haircut than anything else.
Up next is Kristin Scott Thomas. I like her, and she was perfect in
Angels & Insects, giving the best supporting actress performance of
the year in 1995. But in Up at the Villa, she's too old for the role: a 40-year-old trying to play a
character who's supposedly in her young 30's. Otherwise, her performance is fine, perhaps demonstrating a bit
more forced acting than usual.
Third, what's with Jeremy Davies? That guy is the biggest goofball ever. I can't still forget what he did in
The Million Dollar Hotel, and I mean it in both good and bad ways.
In Up at the Villa, his character shoots himself in the heart, and all of a sudden, everybody's life has
been fucked over for a few days.
Fourth, back to Sean Penn and Kristin Scott Thomas, they have no chemistry whatsoever. These two may look handsome
in appearance, but there's nothing between them. What an unconvincing display of love. In fact, she got it down
pat with Jeremy Davies, and it wasn't that hard.
On the bright side, like Angels & Insects and
The Blood Oranges, the visuals are stunningly pleasing, especially the
costumes and in/exterior sets. As a result, it's an easy movie to watch. However, I'm not sure about the rows of
tomatoes atop the wall alongside the tennis court. It seems rather pointless. On the other hand, Anne Bancroft
gives a decent effort, but James Fox is too old for Kristin Scott Thomas...eek. The problem with the supporting
players is they're allocated maybe ten minutes of screen time to develop their characters before disappearing
for the most part, leaving behind a sum of unsatisfying resolutions.
All in all, despite the nice cinematography, Up at the Villa isn't a great Philip Haas picture.