Cold Mountain
3/4
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Jude Law, Renee Zellwegger, Kathy Baker, Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson, Donald Sutherland
Rated R for Violence and Sexuality
War tends to bring out the nastiest parts of human nature. In desperation for success or survival, the normal trappings of society and human behavior no longer exist, and people do things that, in a sane world, they would never consider doing. Movies like have understood this for as long as there have been movies. "Platoon," "Saving Private Ryan," "Beasts of No Nation," "Blood Diamond." The titles that show humanity at its worst are too numerous to count.
Typically ignored is that life on the home front is no picnic either. Even if your house isn't bombarded with armored shells or gunfire on a daily basis, war brings uncertainty and fear. "The Messenger" shows the pain that casualties bring to the ones left behind (and to the ones handing out the terrible news, as it turns out). "Mrs. Miniver" demonstrated that living in a country at war meant a constant, nagging fear of attack. "Cold Mountain," based on the critically acclaimed novel by Charles Frazier, seeks to do a bit of both.
I actually read "Cold Mountain." Or tried to anyway. The book was such a shameless attempt to impress literary critics with allusions, metaphors and "authentic" writing that it was practically unreadable. Not having finished it, I can't say for certain, but my hunch is that screenwriter/director Anthony Minghella kept a lot of that for the film. But what works for a book doesn't necessarily translate well for film. So when the characters start talking about mystical visions and chatter about things that are meant to be metaphors for something else, it comes across as goofy.
The film follows two lovers: Ada Monroe (Kidman) and W.P. Inman (Law). She is the "daddy's girl" of a pastor (Sutherland) who moves to Appalachia for the sake of his heath. He's a carpenter who barely says a word. They're polar opposites, but as countless romances have taught us, opposites can attract. But just as they're falling for each other, the Civil War breaks out.
Life isn't easy for either of them. Inman is forced to fight in a war he never wanted anything to do with, and seeing so much death weighs heavy on his soul. Ada knows nothing about running a farm, so it quickly runs down. Her neighbor, Sally Swanger (Baker), sends Ruby Thewes (Zellwegger), a feisty but handy girl to help her out. After getting wounded, Inman has had enough and decides to return home to Ada come hell or high water.
Crafting an epic romantic melodrama is hard. The line between sterile and emotionless ("The English Patient") and overblown ("Australia"), is thin. So when a movie like "Titanic" or "Atonement" gets it right, it's worth savoring. "Cold Mountain" finds it occasionally, but there were plenty of times where I was bored or barely suppressing laughter. Part of the reason is that nearly everyone in this film was misdirected, the screenplay has some truly pretentious dialogue, and just about everything is more interesting than the central love story.
The romance between Ada and Inman doesn't really work. It's not a misfire; Kidman and Law don't phone it in (although both of them have done better work elsewhere) and there's enough of a spark between them to believe that there's something going on between them. It's just that their romance is built upon a fantasy. The two haven't spent enough time for the audience to believe that there's a love for the ages going on here. This isn't a concession on the part of the script...the two barely know each other. For this to work, the audience must believe that there's some mystical force connecting them. But Minghella doesn't establish what that is. As a result, any of the success in the romance department is purely from the efforts of its stars.
The supporting characters are much more interesting than the main lovers. And what an eclectic cast it is. Renee Zellwegger as a firecracker of a handywoman, Brendan Gleeson as her father who is not immune from temptation, Donald Sutherland as Ada's loving father, the late Philip Seymour Hoffman as a sleazy reverend, Giovanni Ribisi as a drunken family man, Ray Winstone as the brutish leader of the local militia, a fetching Natalie Portman as a young mother, the list goes on. Special mention has to go to Charlie Hunnam, whose portrayal as a sadistic thug is downright chilling. Perhaps the only one who could have played it better is Dan Stevens.
"Cold Mountain" isn't an epic romance for the ages. It's set up on a shaky foundation from the get go, and while Nicole Kidman and Jude Law are talented actors, they aren't Kate and Leo. But I am recommending it because despite its problems, there are elements that do work, such as the home front aspect of the Civil War. It seems like an oxymoron to recommend an epic romance for everything but the romance, but not every movie plays by the rules.
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Jude Law, Renee Zellwegger, Kathy Baker, Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson, Donald Sutherland
Rated R for Violence and Sexuality
War tends to bring out the nastiest parts of human nature. In desperation for success or survival, the normal trappings of society and human behavior no longer exist, and people do things that, in a sane world, they would never consider doing. Movies like have understood this for as long as there have been movies. "Platoon," "Saving Private Ryan," "Beasts of No Nation," "Blood Diamond." The titles that show humanity at its worst are too numerous to count.
Typically ignored is that life on the home front is no picnic either. Even if your house isn't bombarded with armored shells or gunfire on a daily basis, war brings uncertainty and fear. "The Messenger" shows the pain that casualties bring to the ones left behind (and to the ones handing out the terrible news, as it turns out). "Mrs. Miniver" demonstrated that living in a country at war meant a constant, nagging fear of attack. "Cold Mountain," based on the critically acclaimed novel by Charles Frazier, seeks to do a bit of both.
I actually read "Cold Mountain." Or tried to anyway. The book was such a shameless attempt to impress literary critics with allusions, metaphors and "authentic" writing that it was practically unreadable. Not having finished it, I can't say for certain, but my hunch is that screenwriter/director Anthony Minghella kept a lot of that for the film. But what works for a book doesn't necessarily translate well for film. So when the characters start talking about mystical visions and chatter about things that are meant to be metaphors for something else, it comes across as goofy.
The film follows two lovers: Ada Monroe (Kidman) and W.P. Inman (Law). She is the "daddy's girl" of a pastor (Sutherland) who moves to Appalachia for the sake of his heath. He's a carpenter who barely says a word. They're polar opposites, but as countless romances have taught us, opposites can attract. But just as they're falling for each other, the Civil War breaks out.
Life isn't easy for either of them. Inman is forced to fight in a war he never wanted anything to do with, and seeing so much death weighs heavy on his soul. Ada knows nothing about running a farm, so it quickly runs down. Her neighbor, Sally Swanger (Baker), sends Ruby Thewes (Zellwegger), a feisty but handy girl to help her out. After getting wounded, Inman has had enough and decides to return home to Ada come hell or high water.
Crafting an epic romantic melodrama is hard. The line between sterile and emotionless ("The English Patient") and overblown ("Australia"), is thin. So when a movie like "Titanic" or "Atonement" gets it right, it's worth savoring. "Cold Mountain" finds it occasionally, but there were plenty of times where I was bored or barely suppressing laughter. Part of the reason is that nearly everyone in this film was misdirected, the screenplay has some truly pretentious dialogue, and just about everything is more interesting than the central love story.
The romance between Ada and Inman doesn't really work. It's not a misfire; Kidman and Law don't phone it in (although both of them have done better work elsewhere) and there's enough of a spark between them to believe that there's something going on between them. It's just that their romance is built upon a fantasy. The two haven't spent enough time for the audience to believe that there's a love for the ages going on here. This isn't a concession on the part of the script...the two barely know each other. For this to work, the audience must believe that there's some mystical force connecting them. But Minghella doesn't establish what that is. As a result, any of the success in the romance department is purely from the efforts of its stars.
The supporting characters are much more interesting than the main lovers. And what an eclectic cast it is. Renee Zellwegger as a firecracker of a handywoman, Brendan Gleeson as her father who is not immune from temptation, Donald Sutherland as Ada's loving father, the late Philip Seymour Hoffman as a sleazy reverend, Giovanni Ribisi as a drunken family man, Ray Winstone as the brutish leader of the local militia, a fetching Natalie Portman as a young mother, the list goes on. Special mention has to go to Charlie Hunnam, whose portrayal as a sadistic thug is downright chilling. Perhaps the only one who could have played it better is Dan Stevens.
"Cold Mountain" isn't an epic romance for the ages. It's set up on a shaky foundation from the get go, and while Nicole Kidman and Jude Law are talented actors, they aren't Kate and Leo. But I am recommending it because despite its problems, there are elements that do work, such as the home front aspect of the Civil War. It seems like an oxymoron to recommend an epic romance for everything but the romance, but not every movie plays by the rules.
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