I found this movie to be boring, uninspired. Yes, Annette Bening is good, but her performance deserved a nomination, nothing more. She has a great laugh, is still beautiful, and is truly a terrific actress. But the movie can't keep up with her.
During the first half, I had to force myself to stay in the Theadora, it was so dull. And the casting of Shaun Evans was a huge mistake. He showed no hint of dashing, dangerous charm we want out of this character, nor did I believe Julia would settle for. A toothy gin goes only so far. He's a Matthew Broderick starter kit without the sense of self-deprecation.
The twist involving him, Julia and the young actress was nice - in fact, when this unfolded the movie finally started being about something other than an unbelievable romance.
SPOILER. We realize Julia's stage accommodations are just working toward her revenge. And that revenge must've looked great on page. No wait, it couldn't have looked any better in the script unless the writer was as drunk as the one in the movie. That revenge simply wasn't justified. So the ingénue wasn't so pure, stealing first Tom then Jeremy Irons (are we tired of him playing every character the same?), but Julia herself began the Thou Shalt Not behavior. Small revenge would be okay, but as the central theme? This just wasn't strong enough to sustain an entire movie.
Don't waste your time.
During the first half, I had to force myself to stay in the Theadora, it was so dull. And the casting of Shaun Evans was a huge mistake. He showed no hint of dashing, dangerous charm we want out of this character, nor did I believe Julia would settle for. A toothy gin goes only so far. He's a Matthew Broderick starter kit without the sense of self-deprecation.
The twist involving him, Julia and the young actress was nice - in fact, when this unfolded the movie finally started being about something other than an unbelievable romance.
SPOILER. We realize Julia's stage accommodations are just working toward her revenge. And that revenge must've looked great on page. No wait, it couldn't have looked any better in the script unless the writer was as drunk as the one in the movie. That revenge simply wasn't justified. So the ingénue wasn't so pure, stealing first Tom then Jeremy Irons (are we tired of him playing every character the same?), but Julia herself began the Thou Shalt Not behavior. Small revenge would be okay, but as the central theme? This just wasn't strong enough to sustain an entire movie.
Don't waste your time.