Anatomy of a Love Seen

I can't believe how rude some people can be, this movie was so beautiful to me and I had to create an account because I want to offer my support against the haters.

I can see how the movie might seem slow to some. This isn't your typical movie with unrealistic drama at every corner. It is so emotional and relatable because it shows something everyone (well most everyone) has gone through. Breakups can be so heartbreaking, and all of the elements of this movie come together to convey that with aching subtlety. It is rare that you see a film that can make you feel so many things with just one look the actress gives or one strategically placed piano note. Shannon (Zoe) is especially gifted, her range of emotion is incredibly refreshing.

I never cry during movies, but this one really took me by surprise. So much tension builds up, and you see these two people who were once in love now fighting with each other and so angry. You start to find out how it all fell apart, but also without actually seeing the moment they fell in love. Then they hit you with that moment and you finally understand why they are so hurt. That scene was so incredible beautiful, and I credit both ladies for how amazing they did at appearing so in love. So many movies you see people fall in love and it doesn't look real. The culmination of that scene is what really got me to shed a few tears. I thought it would have been some sort of crazy inception situation where the actresses fell in love while filming the scene where they fell in love. I doubt that happened, but it would have been cool.

Anyway, I recommend this movie to anyone who has been through heartbreak. Anyone who appreciates beautiful acting in a film that pays attention to every fine detail. Everyone involved in the movie really did an amazing job. Thank you for making me feel this way because it is something I really needed.

What this film does have going for it is two very pretty female leads and a quite erotic love scene between them, which also both feature prominently on the cover. The film itself breezes through this in the first five minutes. Then there's a brief montage of relationship and the viewer gets dumped in the middle of *something* going on. What follows is a series of overacted confrontations between the girls in which they grimace and cry a lot and give the viewer extremely vague exposition. A little more context would have been nice, like who the characters are and why the viewer should care about them. All this is annoyingly intercut with shots of extras doing stuff, fragments of irrelevant dialogue - and bits of a subplot between two other characters that is completely redundant. The director (who also played the director in the film) seems to have self-importantly shoehorned herself into nearly every scene. These other bits then feel like mere padding, as if during pre-production it turned out that writing the real meat of the script, giving the characters context and some genuine conflict or tension, was really, really hard. I find that a shame because show business with its egocentric personas, its gossip and also prejudice should have provided a dramatic enough setting for an emotional story about a lesbian relationship between actresses. I've seen the film described as slow but I feel that word does not capture my feeling. There is slow and then there is drawn out. Room in Rome was slow but offered much more in terms of both eroticism and character focus. Mind you, making an 80 minute film feel drawn out is an achievement in itself. For a real relationship drama, lesbian or otherwise, you'll need to look elsewhere.

I am not normally one to write reviews. In fact, I had to create an account just to review this movie. I despised this movie so much that the effort it took to warn others not to waste their money (or time) in order to view this movie was worth it. Let me be clear. I am a lesbian, so I was excited at the prospect of a potentially good/appealing lesbian-focused film. This was not that film. In fact, it was the opposite of a good/appealing movie. The film only has a running time of 80 minutes, and yet there were many points when my partner and I considered turning it off...but kept hoping it would get better. Let me assure you, it does not get better. There is no plot except for shallowness and self-absorption, if you can call that a plot. I don't actually want to spend more time writing about/thinking about this movie, but consider yourselves warned.

This film is a a witty undertaking of a subject, that could be easily viewed as trite, or an idealized fantasy of what might be, especially with two very attractive female leads as well as supporting cast(both genders). The character realizations could appear, as contrived, but their is a sense of honesty, and hopeful behavior that rings true to the two lead characters. Specifically referencing those of true intimacy of being alone in public sphere.

The film moves quickly, and provides a fanciful imagination of what love and love lost could look like between these two ladies, and delves into intimate, while quick similar to that in life, moments of what it feels like to have love, loose it, want to retain it, and maybe win again. Yes, there is something familiar about the plot, and the characters, what is refreshing is the execution, and understanding that it is a bit of a show.

Yes, the ending is a bit tidy, however the question that is effective is that of the audience. Is this real? or is this an ideal? Luckily, the films producers and directors provide a clean line of sure, but its really up to the viewer.

I have to say that I only watched this film because the film I intended to watch on Netflix had disappeared. and when I did start watching it, I came very close several times in the first 20 minutes to turning it off. But as it went on and I realised more what was happening it grew on me, and in the apparent messiness some very good acting and some very truthful situations emerged. It's a miniature, but a worthwhile one. It's not erotic, except maybe at the very end, but that is not the point; it's about feelings. The sub-plot of the relationship between the director and her assistant is perhaps more convincing than the main plot, and perhaps more interesting.