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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
are 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 often have success
doing so. Unfortunately, Sean Penn doesn't have what it takes; more attention was spent on his perfect haircut than anything else.
The next one 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 way. 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 good 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 good 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 to develop their characters but disappear 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.