Making a film about the afterlife is a very tricky subject. And by tricky, i mean it's hard to do. There are so many elements that you must cover to maintain your audience interest, as well as relating to everyone's belief system, even if they are atheist. And so far, not too many films have succeeded in this field, with the exception of "What Dreams May Come".....but thats just me.
I will say this about Clint Eastwood as a director. He certainly knows how to pack a punch with both plot and character. However, this film falls just a bit short of his usual expectations. Not to say that the movie is bad by any means, i really enjoyed it, it just didn't have that overwhelming feeling that we find in most Eastwood pictures. And i mainly credit it to this.....
The movie takes sort of a "Traffic"/"Babel" approach with it's characters. Each one of them affected by death in different ways, and each of them confronting and coping with it. Now this does sound pretty dramatic, however, it leaves most of our characters, with the exception of Matt Damon, just starring out into space. Yes, i know they are depressed and deep in thought, but showing someone deep in thought can only be entertaining for so long. Yes, each character has a certain level of depth.....but at times, they would come off as a bit dull.
Secondly, and this is a big one.....if you are going to make a movie about the afterlife, your grand finale' has to be HUGE. I'm sorry but it's the truth. You need to give the audience a slight glimmer of hope, while giving most of your main characters a certain level of atonement. Thie film attempts to do that, but falls short because....well, it doesn't show you anything. You just hear Matt Damon talk about it. And correct me if i am wrong, but hearing someone talk about the afterlife is something you can find on any street corner. Yeah yeah, i still thought it was alright......but the climax didn't floor me like i wanted it to.
Bottom Line......even though i didn't think it was fantastic, the movie still deserves to be watched. Eastwood seems to have this certain touch that draws you in, no matter what the material is. And that is a luxury that very few directors have. But don't expect to be WOW!'ed.
I will say this about Clint Eastwood as a director. He certainly knows how to pack a punch with both plot and character. However, this film falls just a bit short of his usual expectations. Not to say that the movie is bad by any means, i really enjoyed it, it just didn't have that overwhelming feeling that we find in most Eastwood pictures. And i mainly credit it to this.....
The movie takes sort of a "Traffic"/"Babel" approach with it's characters. Each one of them affected by death in different ways, and each of them confronting and coping with it. Now this does sound pretty dramatic, however, it leaves most of our characters, with the exception of Matt Damon, just starring out into space. Yes, i know they are depressed and deep in thought, but showing someone deep in thought can only be entertaining for so long. Yes, each character has a certain level of depth.....but at times, they would come off as a bit dull.
Secondly, and this is a big one.....if you are going to make a movie about the afterlife, your grand finale' has to be HUGE. I'm sorry but it's the truth. You need to give the audience a slight glimmer of hope, while giving most of your main characters a certain level of atonement. Thie film attempts to do that, but falls short because....well, it doesn't show you anything. You just hear Matt Damon talk about it. And correct me if i am wrong, but hearing someone talk about the afterlife is something you can find on any street corner. Yeah yeah, i still thought it was alright......but the climax didn't floor me like i wanted it to.
Bottom Line......even though i didn't think it was fantastic, the movie still deserves to be watched. Eastwood seems to have this certain touch that draws you in, no matter what the material is. And that is a luxury that very few directors have. But don't expect to be WOW!'ed.