Captivating performances from all 4 main characters. Josh Lucas was sinister and scary without histrionics. Julianne Nicholson, somehow reminding me of Shirley Maclaine, was "beautiful" in her own way, freckled and refreshing. the doomed damsel in distress. Martin Donovan was the only likable character, the muscle with a heart. James Franco played the central character, William/Joseph, literally a lost soul in limbo, with a questionable background, who cheated death narrowly by chance, was living on borrowed time, and left to ponder the "meaning" of his existence/life and why he was spared. My take is he was still marking time until he met and fell for Anne, the sex slave of the sadistic and manipulative crime boss. William never had a chance, yet it seemed like he might have found a shred of reality to hang on. The poignant ending belongs to William, Anne and Victor, who still had their souls. "Boss", on the other hand, became merely a footnote.
The sparse dialog and the artsy cinematography were note-worthy. The mood and melancholy strains of the soundtrack was a bit jarring at times, but might be intentional to go together with the microcosm surrounding the unsavory lives of the four main characters.
Definitely a film for film-lovers.
The sparse dialog and the artsy cinematography were note-worthy. The mood and melancholy strains of the soundtrack was a bit jarring at times, but might be intentional to go together with the microcosm surrounding the unsavory lives of the four main characters.
Definitely a film for film-lovers.