Film Reviews

Evening

• Rating:
• Director: Lajos Koltai.
• Starring: Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Vanessa Redgrave, Patrick Wilson.
• Details: US / 117mins (12A).

After directing the rather impressive Fateless, you can't really blame Lajos Koltai for going for a safe bet as an introduction to his Hollywood career - but he should pick his projects with more care. Ann Lord (Redgrave) lies in bed dying of cancer and her two daughters - Nina (Collette) and Constance (Natasha Richardson) - contemplate the meaning of her life and their own. As Ann drifts in and out of consciousness, she thinks back to a time when she (played by Danes) fell in love with the charming doctor Harris (Wilson) at the wedding of a close friend. On paper, Evening should have worked: a best-selling novel adapted by The Hours scribe Michael Cunningham, starring a decent line-up of character actors (even Meryl Streep and Glenn Close pop in for a look) and directed by a man whose previous feature garnered international acclaim. However, Evening's promise is hamstrung by an unnecessary melodramatic makeover, and those who are lactose intolerant should stay well clear. It is a lovely looking film, as you'd expect from Guisseppe Tornatore's former cinematographer, but the by-the-numbers plotting and lethargic pacing let the side down. There's not a lot going on here. Not even the rent.

Review by Gavin Burke