LuckyWill"Match Point" DVD Review
September 11th 2006 00:04
*Exhale* After seeing this film you really do need to take a few breaths to rid yourself of the nervous tension that slowly creeps up on you. This is a gripping thriller that relentlessly turns up the heat and leaves you hollowed from an experience of first-hand murder, deceit and infidelity. If you’re looking for an easy-going perv at Scarlett Johansson or an entertaining and irreverent comedy on everyday life from Woody Allen, then you’ve picked up the wrong dvd case.
Like the touch of a tennis ace delivering a drop shot; this film (and its plot) is gently paced, visually pleasant and ambitiously directed. Woody Allen has taken the writing and directing reigns of a thriller for his next outing, leading a controlled Johnathon Rhys Meyers as retired tennis pro Chris Wilton, into a dark persona reminiscent of Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus in Gladiator – ruthless, competitive and single-minded. After becoming a tennis coach, he soon befriends student Tom Hewett, played by Matthew Goode, an upper class son of latter day English aristocracy. From there he bustles into meeting Tom’s sister, Chloe and fiancée Nola, played by Scarlett Johansson.
Entering a life of privilege by association through his new acquaintances, he begins dating Chloe and lands a new job under her father, played by the congenial Brian Cox but all the while is secretly stirred by infatuation for Nola. She’s an aspiring American actress and fish out of water in England to the sporadic ridicule of her supposed mother in law. She’s sensual - unlike his fiancée and their family and has stronger feelings of connection to her through a life worked for not inherited. Maintaining this link to wealth and high society life which Chris and Nola have become partial to is a key theme and one which necessitates their façade must remain untarnished until their passions lay unbridled. Ultimately this is the same link that brings them together yet separates them forever.
Comparable to “The Talented Mr. Ripley” in terms of masking our desires, subterfuge and leading double lives, this thriller is an intelligent portrayal of deceit and moral ambiguity with a few nerve-racking twists that will leave you breathless. Handled superbly by Woody Allen, the beguiling Chris Wilton illustrates a tale that’s both evocative and increasingly disconcerting. The cast all serve their part well (even some glances of acting from Scarlett Johansson) and it’s indeed the best thriller I’ve seen in awhile.
Images taken from:
iconmovies.com.au
sydneyanglicans.net
bbb.co.uk
Like the touch of a tennis ace delivering a drop shot; this film (and its plot) is gently paced, visually pleasant and ambitiously directed. Woody Allen has taken the writing and directing reigns of a thriller for his next outing, leading a controlled Johnathon Rhys Meyers as retired tennis pro Chris Wilton, into a dark persona reminiscent of Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus in Gladiator – ruthless, competitive and single-minded. After becoming a tennis coach, he soon befriends student Tom Hewett, played by Matthew Goode, an upper class son of latter day English aristocracy. From there he bustles into meeting Tom’s sister, Chloe and fiancée Nola, played by Scarlett Johansson.
Entering a life of privilege by association through his new acquaintances, he begins dating Chloe and lands a new job under her father, played by the congenial Brian Cox but all the while is secretly stirred by infatuation for Nola. She’s an aspiring American actress and fish out of water in England to the sporadic ridicule of her supposed mother in law. She’s sensual - unlike his fiancée and their family and has stronger feelings of connection to her through a life worked for not inherited. Maintaining this link to wealth and high society life which Chris and Nola have become partial to is a key theme and one which necessitates their façade must remain untarnished until their passions lay unbridled. Ultimately this is the same link that brings them together yet separates them forever.
Rating: 3/1/2 starz
Images taken from:
iconmovies.com.au
sydneyanglicans.net
bbb.co.uk
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