Thursday 7 November 2013

Blue Jasmine


 


*****






After her wealthy husband is arrested over illegally obtained money, Jasmine, a lady of leisure and dinner parties, loses everything and is forced to move in with her sister.
                                                                                   

 I’ll start off by saying that this movie was brilliant because it wasn’t in my opinion anything like any Woody Allen films that I’d seen before. It's not that I disliked other films of his, more that this film stood out for me. There were a few stylistic qualities that were essentially trademarks of the Woody Allen film, but that was to be expected.



The actors definitely deserve mention Sally Hawkins gave an excellent performance as Jasmine’s sister and Cate Blanchet was incredible as a nervous wreck. The interactions between the two characters were rich in drama and emotion and this is how Blue Jasmine differs from some of his other work. The characters challenge the viewer, the story was edgy and you got the feeling that Jasmine was always on the verge of collapse! There was humour, but this story was much more about drama and emotional complexity.


This film is a long way from movies like Sleeper or Bananas and with the exception of To Rome With Love Allen’s movies are getting slicker. The pacing of Blue Jasmine is impeccable and despite the film’s character driven nature, there is a visible three act structure. All in all Blue Jasmine is a great movie that sees the director and actors alike, on top form.             

3 comments:

  1. A good review. Totally agree with your praise for the performance of the two lead females. It is a measure of Sallw Hawkins' talent and versatility that she has appeared recently in films by Woody Allen and Mike Leigh. Tow very different directors and different challenges I think. I wonder if you agree?

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  2. Definately, in fact there was a recant radio article featuring interviews with Woody Allen, Mike Leigh and Sally Hawkins. Here's the website with the interview if youve not yet heard it. I couldnt work out how to put in a link so it will have to be copied.
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03b2vyl

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  3. Thank you very much for the link.

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