Never Let Me Go

I don't cry at a lot of movies and any film that can move me to tears is at least an 8.

Andrew Garfield was brilliant in this. My eyes have been opened to his talents. Watch his expressions when he makes a visit along with Carey. It could not have been any better.

The cast was so well chosen, the soundtrack perfect.

This title goes onto the rewatch list.

The first time I caught this film I turned it off quite early, as I found it too upsetting, (only the second film to do this to me). The second time I was prepared and got through the scene in question and so glad I did. The plot can seem absurd on the surface, but that only amplifies the messages it conveys. It was several years ago that I watched it yet it is embedded on my psyche and I often think about it to this day in a way only a handful of films have. I also rate The Godfather as a 10, but it doesn't haunt me the way this film does.

You are following the story of a group of friends, beautifully acted and directed, which engages you as a good drama should, only at the end (when she says the final lines) did it dawn on me that I had just watched humanity under a microscope. I couldn't see the wood for the trees, till this story lifted me up and let me see it whole. Uplifting.

Recently I got a chance to see Never Let Me Go, a film based on the acclaimed novel by Kazuo Ishiguro.

I ask those who read my review to take it with a grain of salt, as the film is sharply divisive between love and hate. Those who love it say it's emotionally devastating, those who don't find emotion to be lacked. But from my point of view, I find it to be an elegant feature.

Carey Mulligan stars as Kathy, a passionate young girl who is in a complicated love triangle that also includes Tommy (Played by Andrew Garfield), the not so secret love of Kathy's life, and Ruth (Played by Keira Knightley), a jealous woman who stole Tommy while the three of them were attending a mysterious boarding school known as Hailsham, where all students are bred for a specific purpose explained to us at the end of the first act.

Alex Garland, the writer of films such as 28 Days Later, may not have been the most obvious choice to pen the script, but since seeing the film, I understand why. It may come across as a melodramatic romance, but at Never Let Me Go's core is an enigmatic Science-Fiction, make no mistake about that. Even if you don't find the passion to be translated effectively on screen, you can tell it was there on paper. The result is a captivating feature leading to a finale that, as far as emotions go, is heartbreaking to behold, but it wasn't overwhelmingly tragic.

I also admired the performances. Not just from Andrew Garfield's fine performance as Tommy, not just for Charlotte Rampling, Sally Hawkins and Nathalie Richard making great use of their small roles, or even Keira Knightley's exceptional, and gripping performance as Ruth, the true driving force is Carey Mulligan. The Handling of her character is perfect, made even more so by her gentle performance of quiet passion.

It's also a beautifully shot feature, sporting lovely cinematography by Adam Kimmel, as well as a lovely score by Rachel Portman. Although at times her score feels a little intrusive to the more quiet nature of the visuals, her strings score captures a strong essence of each character's emotional state.

Like I said, take a huge grain of salt in regard to Never let Me Go, which I give ***1/2 out of ****

Some novels are very difficult to film. This is one of them. Even if the scenario was a well written one, it would be a hard thing to do. Unfortunately, the scenario is not good. It fails to capture the most significant moments described beautifully in the novel. I understand the necessity of leaving some material out, changing the sequence or nature of some events in a screenplay to make it more suitable to film, but here the whole storytelling feels rushed and empty of context. It does not do justice to the characters and events in the source material.

For someone who didn't read the book but only watched this film, the story must have looked like it is a simple love triangle drama with a dystopian background which is only there to make it interesting but doesn't really add up. In fact the book is far from it. The writer meticulously constructs the setting which is very much relevant to the events in the book and the moods of the characters. The book is a genre defying masterpiece in examining true human nature, love, hope and desperation. The film unfortunately can not achieve conveying these ideas. Emotion is there, thanks to good acting, but it is overall not a good film and the fact that the novel was such a beauty makes the matters worse.

In my opinion, it should only be watched after reading the book to visualise parts of it if you need that.

The concept of the story can be well appreciated, as it probes into one of the most vexing conundrums of medical and societal ethics ever attempted in modern times. However, there are various plot holes, which I won't delve into here, as such might provide unintentional spoilers.

Other films, which are perhaps a bit more technically realistic and futuristic, have probed this same conundrum in their own context, and that may be the ultimate shortcoming of this production. Even now, medical science is progressing in directions which could eventually make this depicted scenario completely obsolete.

Having said that, though, the caliber of acting and storytelling here is first rate. The focal point of this production is not on a sci-fi style of motif, but rather exploring the social complexities that this type of depicted scenario might create, and likely would create if something like this were ever to come to pass.

As a character study of the human condition under extraordinary circumstances, this is a compelling enough production to hold almost anyone's attention. Everyone delivered their characters exceptionally well, but Carey Mulligan really shines here.

As other reviewers have suggested, this may not be for everyone. No action scenes here, no glitzy sci-fi tech and all that, but as a compelling story remarkably well told and acted, the time spent watching this is not wasted.