User reviews

I agree with an earlier reviewer that this film derives much of its effect from being set in 1962. The period feel is beautifully communicated and the plot needs to work itself out in a world where places like Athens, Crete and Istanbul were not just exotic but isolated, where holidaying Americans would still be surprised and interested to meet other Americans, and people on the run could hope to hide away. The chemistry between the three leads, who are all well played, does lack fizz and there is a clumsy and rather hackneyed third act. But the film is never less than engaging and all the better for not resorting to surprise twists. The music tries too hard to be exciting, almost as if the director thinks the visuals need some extraneous help to keep the audience interested. I think he is wrong - there is enough going on here, including some fine acting and cinematography, to appeal to audiences who like films with substance, a trajectory, and a sound sense of place and time.

Adapted by its director, Hossein Amini, from a little known novel by Patricia Highsmith "The Two Faces of January" turns out to be a highly satisfying tale of murder most foul very typical of Miss Highsmith. OK, so it's not on the same level as "The Talented Mr Ripley", "Plein Soleil" or "Strangers on a Train" but with its emphasis on plot rather than 'action' it's still a cut above a good many of today's so-called thrillers. Also typical of Highsmith is that the principal relationship in the film is between two men, (though one of them is married while the other starts to fall for the wife). The married one is Viggo Mortensen, apparently rich and touring Greece but also harboring a dark secret. The wife is pert little Kirsten Dunst and the man who falls for her is tour guide Oscar Issac. At first Issac thinks he has the upper hand, swindling Mortensen out of a few thousand dollars only to realize quite early in their relationship that he has bitten off more than he can chew. After awhile Dundst's character becomes almost redundant as the men start to play power games with each other. Whereas the male/male relationships in other Highsmith adaptations were mostly homo-erotic with at least one of the characters clearly drawn as gay. Here the relationship is meant to evoke a father and a son, (Issac's character has issues with his dead father). This slightly dilutes the dark heart of the picture. Movies like "The Talented Mr Ripley" and "Strangers on a Train" worked as well as they did because the villain was clearly homosexual and psychopathic and you never knew where his temper and jealous rages might take him. In this movie Mortensen is undoubtedly the jealous straight guy while Issac is just too nice, (he's too sweet to be a real con-man). Still, all three leading players are excellent and Amini tightens the screws very nicely as the film progresses. Filmed, for the most part, in Greece it will also prove something of a boost for the Greek Tourist Board this summer.

I have to applaud Hosseini's directorial debut. "The Two Faces Of January" takes us mostly to the 1960's Greece, with three main characters in focus.

Beautifully shot, this visually stunning period-piece (if I can call it that) relies on story and characters rather than trying to impress with extravagant plot twists and special effects. The narrative is very well balanced and restrained from the hyperactive traps of modern cinematic storytelling.

Good acting from everyone involved and my compliments to the music composer too, for providing a very fitting soundtrack.

This is classic film making. Nothing innovative but very beautiful to look at, a fitting choice to watch on a lonely evening.

'The to faces of January' is an old-fashioned, decent thriller with a nice sixties setting and solid acting. Everything about it is immaculate. The plot is intelligent enough: a couple of rich tourists meet a young American tour guide, who accidentally witnesses the husband committing a crime. One thing leads to another, and soon enough the guide is caught in a web of lies and deceit, and it becomes impossible to escape without incriminating himself. The crime story is spiced up by the mutual romantic attraction between the guide and the young wife. There is even a sort of life lesson included: money is the root of all evil.

The movie is well worth seeing, if only because it is nice to see a film that's not experimental, violent, provocative, filled with special effects or in one way or another trying to be hip or trendy.

I can see why so many reviewers make references to Hitchcock. The film is set in the early sixties, the era in which Hitch made some of his best films like 'The Birds' or 'Marnie'. Still, this film lacks the touch of a genius like Hitchcock. The characters have no extra psychological layers, and the unconventional scenes and themes that make the Hitchcock-movies so special, are absent in this film.

I recently rewatched The Two Faces of January (2014) on Tubi. The storyline follows a couple on vacation in Athens who meet an opportunistic tour guide who becomes obsessed with the wife. When the husband kills a private detective and the tour guide witnesses the crime, he agrees to help the couple escape the country and find a path to freedom. As the tour guide spends more time with the couple, the web of lies and deceit deepens, making it hard to tell who is conning whom.

Directed by Hossein Amini in his directorial debut, the film stars Viggo Mortensen (The Lord of the Rings), Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight), Kirsten Dunst (Spider-Man), Daisy Bevan (Elizabeth), and David Warshofsky (Running Scared).

This is a unique storyline with unpredictable characters and some smart twists and turns. Some aspects of the story feel a bit far-fetched, while others seem more authentic, but the cat-and-mouse game is well-told. There are plenty of scenes that induce anxiety. The actors deliver excellent performances, with a consistently awkward relationship between Mortensen and Isaac. Dunst plays the perfect beautiful, innocent, naive wife, with her own part to play in the storyline. While there are some predictable aspects to the film, it keeps you intrigued until the worthwhile conclusion.

In conclusion, The Two Faces of January is a well-crafted tale of twists and turns until the very end. I would score this a 6.5-7/10 and recommend seeing it once.

Although Oscar nominated for writing 1997's The Wings of the Dove, Hossein Amimi shone brightest in the spotlight for writing the acclaimed Drive, enough so that he earned the opportunity to write and direct his own film, The Two Faces of January. Although a thriller drenched in style, it couldn't be further from Drive. While Drive relishes in quiet tension, The Two Faces of January is much more obvious, but in an equally enjoyable if much a much weaker way. Its tone is hard to place, while dark and certainly not comic, there's an accessible lightness about it. I can see why others found it risible. The drama between Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst and Oscar Isaac feel like high school teenagers. While some moments between them fumble, others hit a tender spot. It's breezy, with a great atmosphere in its Greek production design, and it blends well with the tension of its Hitchcockian thriller narrative to make an engaging and occasionally resonate film despite its silliness but it stops it from being cold or dry. It may not live up to Amimi's potential, but it's decent stuff. Hopefully he has more to offer later.

7/10

Nice movie, I liked the atmosphere in which it was shot, Kirsten Dust she was excellent in her role.

The Two Faces of January (2014)

You can take this as a chilling drama about theft and murder and duplicity set in 1962 Greece, as several Americans get interwoven with mistakes and misplaced passions. The great scenery is unending, and varied, and the acting and filming are really great. It's good stuff, and you might give it a go. I think it's underrated, too.

But read at least another graf here: it's not half of what its inspiration is, the Minghella version of "The Talented Mr. Ripley." Yes. And it's obvious all over the place. The gorgeous Mediterranean setting (Greece instead of Italy), the Americans abroad (more on them next), the characters who are not who they seem to be, and who turn to murder almost by necessity. Even the parade of location work, from historic sites to busy public squares to a ferry boat will make the two movies feel and move in similar ways. And finally, the writer of both stories is the same—Patricia Highsmith—and one of the producers of this movie is the son of the director of the earlier one. Yup.

So think again if you didn't like that Minghella "Ripley." It's my good luck I loved that movie, and it's worth saying right away that this is not as lyrical, rich, surprising, moving, or stunning by any stretch. You might prefer its slightly more restrained palette, and you'll surely notice there is very little music, but overall the fullness (and amazing cast) of the first movie is winning.

Kirsten Dunst is the biggest star here, playing the somewhat innocent wife to a scammer husband (Vigo Mortensen) who has gotten rich off his dealings. When someone tracks him down in Athens to get his money back, things go bad fast. A Greek- American tour guide and small time swindler himself (Oscar Isaac) has befriended this pair and gets pulled into their orbit for money, and for love. As any three mismatched characters on the lam soon learn, they are more dangerous to each other than they realize.

So it has a lot of great elements, and it's pulled together quite well by director Hossein Amini. There a couple of times you wonder why the characters would quite do what they do, but in general the growing psychology works, and with all the beautiful side attractions, it's fun to watch.

My favorite part of The Two Faces of January was the lovely period costume design. Set in the 1960s, Kirsten Dunst got to wear some adorable costumes made of thick, lovely material and cut in the classic style. Everything, from the hats and handbags to the cigarettes and lighters, was period authentic.

Kirsten plays the happy and oblivious housewife to Viggo Mortensen. They're on vacation in Athens and they come across Oscar Isaac, a "tour guide" who frequently takes advantage of his clients. Oscar is a bit shady, and it's clear he plays everything on an angle. His knowledge of back-streets and disreputable characters comes in handy after the Mortensens get visited by a private detective. All of a sudden, they're on the run, turning to Oscar to help them leave Athens without checking out of their hotel and retrieving their passports.

If you watch a lot of modern movies, you won't find this particularly violent or gruesome. I had watched the preview and knew it was a bit of a thriller, but I am a definite lightweight when it comes to blood and guts. I won't hold it against the film, for I am well aware of how much bloodier and gutsier most modern flicks are. Those who rent this European indie flick will be treated to some beautiful locales, as well as interesting characters and a storyline that keeps you on your toes from start to finish.

DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. There are some handheld camera movements during the crowded chase scenes, and that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"

If you're a fan of old movies black and white especially here's a kick back to old cinema. A movie driven by the source material, And the directors love of it he novel . A strong cast delivers some strong performances your entry to the movie is on catch up, you feel like there much going on that has yet to be explained but not in a frustrating away. It works like that thought the movie. Having heard very little about it my expectations where low and while it's not a cinema masterpiece it is a very enjoyable forward moving film and story and a thriller style with performances that carry the story well.

An American tour guide in Greece. He develops a crush for a lady who is on holiday there with her husband. He gets to know them in order to get to her. Little does he know that they carry a guilty and dangerous secret.

The captivating storyline with the backdrop of ancient ruins make for an unusually old school ambiance. A modern day American tragedy unfolds in the style of a Greek tragedy. The spark, the chemistry, the way of no return and the guilty secret that threatens everyone.

Whilst it falls short of amazing, it will make for a thrilling experience at the cinema. It successfully deals with several concepts such as the chance encounter with charming strangers, secrets within a seemingly happy marriage, the attraction of risk and being prepared to give it all for a hunch.

A well deserved 7/10 with a plus.

Stylish-looking and fairly clever thriller from Patricia Highsmith's novel, starring a handful of acting-powerhouses in the leads. The inevitable love triangle turns the at first amicable Viggo Mortensen and Oscar Isaac to adversaries as their dishonest ways unravel around them. The prize in the middle is Kirsten Dunst. Director Hossein Amini (the penner of Drive) creates an at times steaming, vibrant atmosphere where you don't know quite what to expect, even if the film arguably purports to hold more mysteries than it actually does. This isn't quite The Talented Mr. Ripley or Strangers On a Train, but it's still a production with a distinctive Highsmith quality to it.

I always think that the word 'thriller' can be a little misleading. 'The Two Faces of January' is often described as a 'thriller,' however, if you're expecting wall to wall car chases and edge-of-your-seat kind of thrills then you're going to be sorely disappointed.

It's about an American city trader and his young wife who have 'escaped' to Europe, due to owing money to the 'wrong' people. Unfortunately for them, their past literally catches up with them in the form of a debt collector who they subsequently kill. Now they're forced to enlist the help of a local young man to evade capture and flee their once safe haven.

And what follows is pretty slow, but deliberately slow. There are no government agents of police officers on their trail. Their worst (and most dangerous) enemies turn out to be each other. The two men are sort of tied together, both admitting that they'd drop the other in it if either were to get caught. It's almost more of a 'cat and mouse' sort of game they play, even though they're never more than a few feet apart.

Some people have described the film as akin to Hitchcock's work. There are certainly comparisons to be drawn, as, not only is The Two Faces of January set in Hitchcock's era, but it's more of a subtle thriller, relying on tension in relationships and a slow build up of tension to provide the experience.

Viggo Mortensen is the star. Yes, Kirsten Dunst is the other 'big name' in the film and her (and Oscar Isaac supports the pair of them), but Mortensen arguably turns in the best performance. You can't help but at least slightly root for him throughout most of the film.

It's not a long film and its runtime is suitable. If it went on too long, people would probably start getting bored. If you're into quieter, more refined, character-based thrillers, then you should give this a try. Those craving fast-paced action will be best off avoiding this.

A thoroughly decent movie that respects the audience. Some great locations, mostly in Athens. It's a three-hander, and in retrospect the chemistry between the three of them could have got under the skin a bit more, rather like in Knife in the Water. As with Patricia Highsmith's other works, a key theme is male one-upmanship but it doesn't play out here quite the way it ought to, especially with the final pay-off, which is nonetheless quite satisfying.

Nothing wrong with any of the performances, and the twists and turns of the plot work well, but if you can't really sympathise too much with the characters, the director ought to have a more mischievous style perhaps, rather like Hitchcock of course. So this is a film that won't wind you up much, but won't ruffle your feathers either.

It is very apt that this film is called THE TWO FACES OF January because, as Janus was the Roman god of beginnings and transitions, the three characters at the center of this noir-ish thriller are in somewhat of a transition themselves. When their paths cross in Athens (another nod to classic mythology, and one rich in its cultural history), it sets them on a journey that will irrevocably change them. One thing you'll notice when watching this film is that it doesn't feel like something that would be produced today. It has a fairly slack pace and there is an attention to fashion and scenery that recalls a bygone era, and in many ways this feels rather intentional. Greece is a country with a rich history of ruins, and yet it is a burgeoning modern society. This adds to the subtext about the relationship with past and future that I believe the film is trying to convey. Still, there is another meaning which can be gleaned from the title, one that is a bit more literal: being two-faced, or duplicitous. The characters played by Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst and Oscar Isaac weave a web of intrigue and secrets which end up being their undoing and cause things to go wrong, as is apt to happen in a film such as this. Even though I haven't seen too much Hitchcock, there was something very Hitchcockian about this film, from the double-crosses and intrigue, to the amazing score which reminded me a bit of Bernard Herrmann. Aesthetically and thematically, this film has a lot going for it, and the performances help sell it even more. Still, the way in which things are revealed and wrapped up was a little too simple and anti-climactic for me. I'll not give away any spoilers, but at the end you might ask yourself, "That's it?" That's not to say that the journey to the end wasn't thrilling, but it fumbles a bit in those final moments. Overall, even with the weak payoff, this is small film that deserves to be seen if only for the beautiful cinematography and excellent performances.

Viggo Mortensen is on the run in Greece. Kirsten Dunst is his beautiful wife. Oscar Isaac is a younger American who falls for Dunst. Then Mortensen kills a man who is about to arrest him for defrauding investors. Athens and Istanbul are the locations. The time is 1962. Hossein Amini directed. Alberto Iglesias did the music. Max Minghella was one of ten producers. This film cost $31,000000! There is no comparison to the Talented Mr. Ripley. For more depth backstories in flashbacks could have been included. Marcel Zyskind edited. I found the film should have been lit up. When Anthony Minghella did Highsmith's The Talented Mr. Ripley, he totally improved on the book. It was a masterful film using ideas from Highsmith. When I made that comparison and also The Postman Always Rings Twice, I realized a brilliant movie can be made from a very thin book. They used the books as a springboard to something larger and better. That didn't happen here.

The plot and the acting/characters save this movie, as it could have been incredibly bland. To be fair though, it is very much a throwback to classic films of the 60's and earlier, both in the way it is shot, the way the action is handled, and also the subtle strings of the soundtrack. Additionally it is an adaptation, of a novel that I unfortunately have not read, and perhaps because of this, the action in this movie is very much in the sequence of events and the characters' evolving (or devolving) relationships, rather than any actual on screen action. This isn't a movie of its time, its lukewarm reception is most probably because of this classical feel. Personally, I think it was a good choice, as we are traveling to Greece, circa 1962, with Chester (Viggo Mortensen) and Colette (Kirsten Dunst).

They are a rich couple on vacation, and soon into the film an American-born multi-lingual scam-artist, Rydal (Oscaar Isaac), watches them dining and takes interest as he notices the huge hotel they are staying in. He proceeds to fleece them every step of the way posing as a tour guide, while keeping one eye on Collete, who it is remarked at one point looks like she could be half her husband's age. His girlfriend seems irrelevant to him, and after the two couples dine together, she isn't seen again as Rydal's interest in Collete and her husband's money rises.

Chester is rich for a reason, and a private investigator tracks him down at his hotel in Greece after the two couples say their farewells. What turns into a scuffle turns into a murder. Meanwhile, on his taxi-ride away from the hotel, Rydal sees a bracelet Chester bought his wife, and immediately heads back to the hotel despite the fact that he cheated Chester into buying the bracelet for an inflated price. This of course brings Rydal into Chester's corrupt and crooked world, one which his wife seems somewhat oblivious of. This murder and subsequent re-meeting of Chester and Rydal sets the story into motion, as Rydal offers to help and becomes further entrenched in Chester's murky, corrupt world, leading to a satisfying end.

The acting and the characters they played were all brilliant, except perhaps Kirsten Dunst – though I am not sure if it was intentional; her character was that of a trophy wife, but the quantity of her lines were as well. She was essentially a spectator of the other two for the most part. Oscar Isaac was great; I never knew if Rydal was lying or not, his emotions and true intentions were a mystery. Viggo was excellent, no surprises there; Chester didn't seem corrupt at all until the beans were spilled, and once they were his character went through several waves of emotion. Viggo didn't overact during these scenes, striking the perfect chord for each one. The chemistry between the three characters was very engaging from the moment they met, and this develops further as the tale unravels itself. I'm sure it helped that they had an excellent source in the novel to work from, but the adaptation itself was very solid and the scripting for the most part was fantastic.

From a visual standpoint though, this movie is slightly dull. The only thing I can say about it is the set design of 1960's Greece was spot on, and combined with the classic feel of the movie, made for a convincing travel back in time. The soundtrack was again very classical in nature, slowly building as the movie progressed with bursts of sound from the string section when the action got hairy.

Overall, this movie isn't amazing, but it was refreshing to see and hear a movie that reminded me of movies from a dead era of cinema. The plot was thick with twists that made sense and continually defied my expectations, creating a nice little suspenseful movie, though not by modern standards.

7/10

Desperados story. It is almost a cliché to follow people going desperate and trying to escape witb loads of money. Fortunately, this film is more about how things seemingly fine gradually go worse and worse. The question is: what could possibly go wrong? And it keeps going. Good to have old places that stayed the same since past millenium to camp a story in 1962.

Good acting and good players, good effects. All credible that way. The spiral downward accelerate to the point of a free fall. Well, this is the life of the psychopaths that are busted. But in the end, the hero could find the truth to share.

Nicely crafted story. Great setting. Dramatic and well told.

Until the wife died. And the weak finish.

Stylish nonetheless.