I'm not really a fan of modern day literary stuff, as I find it all very pretentious, overrated, and more than a little arty farty. This is very much a highbrow literary thriller about an aged professor who takes a trip to Portugal to uncover a story about one man's fight against that country's historical dictatorship.
I wasn't expecting to like this one very much and indeed it doesn't do much to thrill. It's a very self-conscious production that goes out of its way to feel like an "actor's movie", but the problem is that it's so slow and long winded that it doesn't hold the attention. I like Jeremy Irons as an actor, but his character here is dull and his modern-day scenes don't deserve to occupy more than half the running time as they feel irrelevant.
The historical story is better, as it has some fine actors in crucial parts, not least the continually underrated Jack Huston (BOARDWALK EMPIRE). There are also superior roles for August Diehl (so memorable in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS) and Bruno Ganz (NOSFERATU THE VAMPYRE) playing younger and older versions of the same character. However, the most welcome part is a small one from an entirely professional Christopher Lee in one of his last screen appearances, and indeed his presence is the reason I tuned in.
I wasn't expecting to like this one very much and indeed it doesn't do much to thrill. It's a very self-conscious production that goes out of its way to feel like an "actor's movie", but the problem is that it's so slow and long winded that it doesn't hold the attention. I like Jeremy Irons as an actor, but his character here is dull and his modern-day scenes don't deserve to occupy more than half the running time as they feel irrelevant.
The historical story is better, as it has some fine actors in crucial parts, not least the continually underrated Jack Huston (BOARDWALK EMPIRE). There are also superior roles for August Diehl (so memorable in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS) and Bruno Ganz (NOSFERATU THE VAMPYRE) playing younger and older versions of the same character. However, the most welcome part is a small one from an entirely professional Christopher Lee in one of his last screen appearances, and indeed his presence is the reason I tuned in.