November

Greetings again from the darkness. Although I never got the "Friends" fascination, I have always thought Courtney Cox has potential as a movie actress. On this one point, I believe "November" succeeds. She does have a nice screen presence, even when made out to be frumpy, deceitful and purposefully confusing.

This mess of a movie is presented by two relative new comers to the movie biz, director Greg Harrison and writer Benjamin Brand. Both may have something to offer, but it definitely is not on display here. The movie bills itself as a psychological thriller, but the best of these are smart, exciting and intense. This one is only intense for the viewer as we try to assemble the mish-mash of pieces. The M Night Shyamalan wanna-bes use Courtney's photos as clues to what really happened at the crime scene. The use of color change (Courtney's hand bag) and lens focus are also supposed to "assist" us with the timeline and understanding the real story. As the detective says in one scene, "it is too artsy for its own good".

The twists on the Anne Archer (as Courtney's mom) scene are fun to watch, James LeGros is capable as the murdered boyfriend, and the supporting cast is fine, but what kills this one is the failed presentation. I always admire filmmakers who will take a risk (there aren't enough of them), but this one proves there is little uglier than when that risk fails.

Harrison's 'November' is quite an interesting piece of cinema. Shot with HD camera on a minimum budget, the film take us through the stages of of a young photographer's grief. But for whom is she grieving or who's death is she coming to terms with? That becomes apparent in the end. The movie's divided into three chapters: denial, despair and acceptance (stages of grief). The director presents hints through each stage as the truth slowly unfolds. Harrison's execution is quite simplistic in terms of technique. The visuals have a washed out look but are nonetheless intriguing. He uses a lot of symbolic elements, like the different gloomy colours in each segment, and a gloomy soundtrack. The entire film rests on Courteney Cox and she does an exceptional job. It's great to see her in a different role and the actress needs to do more movies. The supporting cast, that includes James LeGros and Anne Archer are very good. 'November' is quite a well made film. It is thought provoking and dark but many will dislike it most likely because of the theme. Many have complained that there is no plot but, in my opinion, I find that to be a ridiculous statement as the story (which I briefly mentioned earlier) is pretty obvious. Whether one likes it or not, I say 'November' is worth the watch.

I really enjoyed the movie "November". I don't pretend to be an "intellectual snob" like some people who reviewed this movie - I just know what I like and what I don't. And I liked this movie. I thought the acting was terrific, the storyline intriguing and thought-provoking, and the film visually very haunting. I would recommend it to anyone - anyone that is who wants to go to a film and "think" about it afterward! I especially enjoyed the use of light and sound to convey the storyline and to move the plot along. The scene's that were I think the most interesting were the one's that kept repeating with different results - i.e. the trips to the counselor and dinner with Sophie's Mother (the terrific Anne Archer). Also, I thought that Courntney Cox gave a great measured performance. It was refreshing to see her play against type and appear in so bold a film. In conclusion, I would love to see this movie again - I believe it is a film to be watched over and over, and each time you would get so much more out of it. I look forward to owning it eventually on DVD. But I would recommend anyone who has the opportunity to see it on the large screen, since it would obviously be so much more effective that way.

It's not without its bumps, but this artsy shot-on-digital psychological indie drama with a potent turn by Courtney Cox and a haunting atmosphere engulfed by trauma, guilt and lost had me engaged through to the end. When her boyfriend is killed in an armed robbery, photographer Sophie struggles to recover when the line between reality and fantasy begins to blur.

Seems to start fairly straight-forward, and this is where I think it's at its best with effectively off-putting and strange moments. Transmitted through its dreary L. A colour plateau and creepy imagery centred around Sophie's photography. But come to the second act, perceptions change constantly. Becoming convoluted in spite of the clues, little by little, foreshadowing a foreseeable outcome. Actions are repeated with varying results, and a non-linear storyline messily switching back and forth between twists and turns. Very gimmicky, but not particularly innovative or smooth in its execution. It was Cox's naturally anxious, and weathered performance which grounded this distorted story structure and style.

I was sort of tossing up between 5 or 6, but I went with the latter due to it keeping me involved in spite of knowing where it was heading.

I was lucky enough to see this film at the Sundance Film Festival (2004). It is a very intense thriller in which Courteney Cox (very different from her Friends work) plays a photographer whose boyfriend (the always excellent James Legros) is shot and killed in a corner store robbery.

The movie starts to get more complicated as Cox's character begins to have flashbacks of the event, replaying it in different scenarios and subtle variations. In each version, we seem to get closer to the "truth" of the actual event.

The film is small in scale, but looks and sounds terrific. I couldn't quite believe it when the director said it was shot in 15 days.

It is surprisingly emotional, while at the same time, intellectually demanding. I can't wait to see this film again when it's released. It is a movie that will undoubtedly benefit from multiple viewings. 10/10