brianberns-1

Stellan Skarsgård is a fine actor, but he's totally miscast in this role. He totally lacks the unsettling affect of a man experiencing severe psychosis. Instead, he comes across as sort of stoically charming, which makes no sense for a person who is clearly an imminent danger to himself and others. (There is no way a person with his degree of illness should be driving a car, let alone running a police investigation.) He's also way too old for a role that requires him to attract the romantic interest of not just one, but two much younger women.

It isn't often that I'll stick with a show this bad all the way through, but I did this time because I had a lot of respect for the actors and director going in. Unfortunately, their combined talents did nothing to save the day in this case. This is simply an unpleasant experience all the way through. Every one of the main characters is thoroughly unlikeable, the direction is mediocre, and the story is annoying. To top it all off, there's a twist at the end that seems calculated to punish the audience for paying attention. I guess the author was trying to make a point at our expense, but this is not my idea of good entertainment or good art.

The leads' commitment to their parts is admirable, but the consistently awkward delivery shows that even the actors didn't understand what Cameron Crowe was going for. There are several times that the actors just seem to be reciting lines without any comprehension of what the character was trying to say. As a viewer, I shared their confusion.

After a while, I just tried let go of the silly plot and vibe with the rom-com flow, but even that superficial take was unsatisfying. It's really hard to sympathize with Bradley Cooper as an emotionally damaged underdog when he has both Emma Stone and Rachel McAdams making goo-goo eyes at him for the entire movie.