nightlydvdreviewElegy
March 24th 2010 02:16
A romance doomed from its inception
There is very little cathartic reward by the end of Isabel Coixet’s emotionally draining drama Elegy, and unfairly so, with a running time of nearly two hours.
Considering Coixet’s apparent attraction to directing sentimental and dismal films (My Life Without Me), it is little surprise that she chose Philip Roth’s novel The Dying Animal as the inspiration for her latest film.
Morbid in its feel and scope, Elegy is seen through the disillusioned eyes of divorced college professor David Kepesh (Ben Kingsley) and follows his successful attempt at wooing beautiful Cuban student Consuela (Penelope Cruz).
The ensuing relationship is one with an interesting dynamic, cleverly side-stepping many clichés, thanks to Nicholas Meyer’s fresh screenwriting.
Far from being the typical predatory professor, Kepesh is characterised as a cultured man of great complexity with a strong sex drive, even at his advanced age. Performed superbly by Kingsley, he is outwardly confident but ultimately deeply unhappy: “When you make love to a woman you get revenge for all the things that defeated you in life,” he reveals only to his audience in a pensively sad tone.
For Cruz, the first half of the film is an opportunity to frolic about, sans clothing. Although she is able to rest on her beauty for her performance, Cruz’s standout moment at the end of the film is genuinely moving. Her character, like Kepesh’s, is one of many contradictions and inner conflict.
With its heavy themes of vulnerability and regret, coupled with its bittersweet ending, Elegy is a film that will test the patience of many and only be truly appreciated by a select few.
2.5 STARS
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