Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Sometimes a failure can be interesting in how it fails. Unfortunately, that isn't the case with this movie. An almost through-sung opera in the minimalist style, the three- to four-note melodies fail to mesmerize as they do with Glass ("Satyagraha") or Cage ("Nixon in China"). The simple words and phrases of the libretto do not grow deeper with repetition (exception: "Six Different Women Have Come Forward"), and the grammatical lapse of "You Who Despises Us" is unforgivable - or laughable, take your choice. There are some mighty performances by Diver and Helberg, but they stand on such flimsy dialog and lyrics that they topple of their own weight. Cotillard may have a lovely singing voice, but it is given no range by the arias/songs, and the operatic fragments that illustrate her character's career are sung by someone else (Catherine Trottman). The puppet Annette is simultaneously creepy and endearing, as any manifestation of lust and guilt should be. That's something they got right. But when a live actor takes over the part for the final scene, instead of becoming more real and believable (and therefore more horrifying), the character suddenly turns articulate and wise. Instead of the shock of innocence corrupted by her parents' weaknesses, we get a scolding moralist. It sort of spoils the whole "Turn of the Screw" vibe. There is great cinematography and set design, and the shipwreck sequence reminded me of the Met's production of "The Pearl Fishers." But you more or less had to close your ears to bear watching it, which pretty much sums up the whole film.