Michael Caine and Clémence Poésy in "Last Love"
‘LAST LOVE’ 3 stars
An elderly American man befriends a young Parisian dancer (1:56). Not rated: Mature themes. In French with subtitles. Empire 25.
Not much happens in Sandra Nettelbeck’s intimate family drama, but its well-drawn connections between lonely souls make an impact nonetheless.
The film’s strength comes primarily from the performers, led by Michael Caine as aging widower Matthew Morgan. Having lost his beloved wife three years ago, he lives alone in Paris, drowning in silent grief. That changes when he meets Pauline (Clémence Poésy), a beautiful young woman who is equally adrift. But their friendship is challenged once Matthew’s cynical, suspicious children (Gillian Anderson and Justin Kirk) come to town.
Caine eases into this role with casual flair, while giving his younger castmates plenty of room to show off their own skills. Nettlebeck trusts them all enough to leave the story, adapted from a novel by Francoise Dorner, mostly unadorned. The leisurely pace will either inspire quiet appreciation or drive impatient viewers to distraction.
‘BIG SUR’ 2 stars
Adaptation of Jack Kerouac’s autobiographical novel (1:40). R: Sexuality, nudity, language. Cinema Village.
“One day I will find the right words,” Jack Kerouac wrote, “and they will be simple.” And perhaps one day a director will find the right way to adapt his words, and the solution will seem simple. But not today.
Today we are faced with yet another well-meaning but unsuccessful attempt to translate Beat poetry into big-screen beauty. Kerouac (portrayed by Jean-Marc Barr) published “Big Sur” in 1962, after his overwhelming popularity drove him to hide out in California with pals Lawrence Ferlinghetti (Anthony Edwards) and Neal Cassady (Josh Lucas). Barr drones much of the text in voice-over, while director Michael Polish trains his camera on spectacular Big Sur scenery.
The men drink, proclaim and complain in impressionistic, though rarely memorable, fashion. Kate Bosworth and Radha Mitchell are lovelorn and lovely as the perpetually overlooked partners. But with Kerouac declaring that “the only thing that matters is the conceptions in my own mind,” we’re still left waiting for the filmmaker who can take us there.
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