Phonearl
Good start, but then it gets ruined
HottWwjdIam
There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.
Zlatica
One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.
jackcwelch23
The great music score, cinematography and acting makes it good, if not great. Great is tough to reach, and much like the balloon in the story it goes too high and slips out of our grasp. Ian Mcewan has written excellent novels, Atonement being a highlight, but this one just tries to achieve too much and doesn't have the meat in the characters to back it up. However, it does make you think, and sometimes squirm with its observations and insights. I saw this as more an existentialist drama than a thriller, though the Hollywood crazy stalker plot point was probably enlarged to keep it entertaining, but it was the quieter and more introspective moments that caught my interest. Daniel Craig does a terrific job of playing a man obsessed with looking for a seemingly impossible to find answer to the mysteries of the randomness of life and death. Rhys Ifans plays the truly unique character and his creepy viewpoint makes you shift in your seat. It's consistently engaging but never a masterpiece, it's takes the loud and angry showdown rather than the quiet thinking that made it work to start. Will still make you never look at a hot air balloon the same way again.
raygirvan-86231
I don't suppose it's a spoiler to say that the main character acquires a stalker; this is the crucial point of the film, and of my impressions of it. The scenario is interesting: the explosion of consequences on a group of dysfunctional Londoners' lives after their involvement in a ballooning accident. But the development of the plot depends on continually unfeasible choices of actions. Nobody seems to have heard of stalker fans. Nobody except the immediate victim, Joe, seems much bothered about it, or even inclined to believe Joe about it. Joe takes none of the obvious steps for dealing with the situation - asking shop staff to remove the person pestering him, solicitor, police, restraining order - or even the dramatically likely outcome of thumping the guy and letting the situation come out in court. The film would probably make sense in a universe where a stalker was an unheard-of phenomenon. But on Planet Earth, it just doesn't work.
filmchasing
One tragic event leads a man into a downward spiral.My two main issues: the script is missing a lot. Without character development, the character motivations are unclear & the characters themselves aren't likable.Second, Joe's dialogue is weak and makes no logical sense unless he's lost the ability to argue/speak for himself. Great actors aside, strong performances still can't salvage a film with an incomplete storyline (run time: 100min), although it has the potentials of a decent thriller.Even if the production values are good & the visuals are nice, this film's not good enough.
Chrysanthepop
'Enduring Love' manages to be grip the viewers attention right from the very beginning. We are given some wonderful shots of the beautiful British landscape at the centre of which there is couple on a picnic. However a hot-air balloon appears to be on the loose and what follows is a terrible accident that effects their lives. 'Enduring Love' is visually impressive mostly due to the excellent cinematography and the background score contributing to the scenes. Penhall's writing is very good (sharp dialogues, unfolding events, well-defined characters) but in the middle it gets a bit slow-paced. The stalker subplot could have been done with less focus (that extra scene during the rolling credits wasn't necessary and the film may have been stronger without it) as it was working better as a movie about Joe and his fragile relationship with Claire. The movie is pretty much character driven and it heavily relies on the performances. Fortunately, this is where 'Enduring Love' scores high. Daniel Craig breathes into a role that seems made for him. He portrays Joe's guilt, confusion, patience and determination with amazing skill. Samantha Morton has less screen time but she is just as good while she gives a beautifully understated performance. Rhys Ifans springs a surprise in remarkably playing a homosexual stalker with Clerambault's syndrome. Bill Nighy and Susan Lynch are adequate in their tiny roles. For me 'Enduring Love' has been a strange movie watching experience but as I thought more about it, I grew to understand and appreciate it more. It does have its flaws as mentioned earlier but it's a good character study and visually interesting.
