(M) Sony DVD/BD
Tyler Hawkins’ (Robert Pattinson) family is fractured by the suicide of his brother Michael, his father’s disinterest (Pierce Brosnan) and the divorce of his parents. He lives in a share house, audits college courses rather than actually going to college and lives a life of nihilistic negligence. The one bright spot in his life is his little sister Caroline (Ruby Jerins).
Ally Craig’s (Emilie de Ravin) family has been fractured by the murder of her mother at the hands of thugs when she was 11. Her father Neil Craig (Chris Cooper) is a cop who has been forever broken by attending the scene of his wife’s senseless murder. He is overprotective of Ally.
Both Ally and Tyler are destined to be thrown together by circumstance, fate and forgiveness and their lives forever will be altered by having spent time together.
Both Pattinson and de Ravin’s performances are genuine and believable; and scenes with Pattinson and Jerin ring true. Their brother/sister relationship comprises some of the better material in the film — but the rest of the film lets them down.
Another slight niggle is the use of colour palette to telegraph every emotion — cold indifference, blue; first blush of love, orange; and so on — less subtle as the film progressed but most obvious as Tyler and Ally basked in the first glow of love.
The film’s themes are timeless but its setting seems to have been designed for shock value alone; the final scenes are for maximum impact rather than narrative relevance.
Adrian Drayton
