Amor Eterno Amor

Paul Cox's Innocence is an unconventional, often very poignant love story about an old man named Andreas (Charles Tingwell) who writes to his first love Claire (a simple yet complex Julia Blake) and the two meet again. Claire has had a husband John (Terry Norris) for a number of decades now, and yet by some powerful if inexplicable force they fall in love once again as they did when they were 16. However this affair comes as a shock to John, but the story unfolds as if it weren't trying to reach any total, formulaic conclusion; which is just one of the films many strong points.

The other strong points come from the terrific performances by Tingwell, Norris and especially Blake who act they're roles with a realism and heart you don't see often in love stories. And of course, Cox delivers fine direction and an even finer script to the mix. Only 2 flaws get in the way- things could've been explained a little better here and they're when it came to some of the reasoning and emotion, plus the ending was a downer. Otherwise, it's a quite worthwhile picture, especially for fans of Cox, or for anybody sick of seeing films up on the marqui with names like Glitter and Soul Survivors. Grade: Between A & A-