`Cassandra's Dream' is forgettable
The third movie in a row he's set and shot in London, following
"Match Point" and "Scoop," is also one of his darkest. Or at
least it strives for darkness - there are repeated references to
Greek tragedies, and while Allen is clearly aiming for that
specific type of gravitas, he fumbles to find the right tone and
never achieves suspense. (Philip Glass' typically insistent score
signals early and often that everyone involved is doomed.)
But Allen does get some intriguing moments out of co-stars Colin
Farrell and Ewan McGregor as brothers Terry and Ian, who are so
desperate to escape their working-class upbringing that they're
willing to commit a murder for hire.
Farrell is especially good - he isn't afraid to be weaselly and
pathetic and get a little dirty for his performance as a garage
mechanic and gambling addict who's in over his head. McGregor is
slicker and more nuanced - Ian is a little better at hiding his
longings, pretending to be a hotel developer and borrowing classic
cars to impress an actress (charismatic newcomer Hayley Atwell)
who's out of his league but shares his ambition.
As the film begins, the brothers are on the verge of buying a
boat they can't afford. But Terry is pumped up from a big win at
the dog track, which inspires them both to make this financial
leap. They christen it "Cassandra's Dream," the name of the
winning dog. The purchase is the first in a series of bad decisions
they will make.
Allen jumps back and forth between both men's attempts to scrape
together a better life. Terry wins big, then loses big, at
high-stakes poker games and dreams of buying an apartment with his
girlfriend (Sally Hawkins); Ian meets with real estate honchos and
visits the seductive Angela, his new girlfriend, at the theater.
The promise of a visit from their wealthy Uncle Howard (Tom
Wilkinson, always solid), a plastic surgeon who's moved to Los
Angeles, gives them both hope. But Howard needs something from
them, too, which gets them even deeper into trouble.
Allen doesn't seem to be judging these people for their
ruthlessness or materialism. He just doesn't seem to care very much
about them. He seems to be saying, it doesn't matter whether you're
a good person or a bad person - destruction is certain, and the
universe is indifferent. Such nihilism isn't exciting, it feels
halfhearted.
"Cassandra's Dream," a Weinstein Co. release, is rated PG-13
for thematic elements, some sexual material and brief violence.
Running time: 105 minutes. Two stars out of four.