Evengyny
Thanks for the memories!
SnoReptilePlenty
Memorable, crazy movie
Roman Sampson
One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.
Tanay Chaudhari
(Based on a casual viewing in Apr-15)To begin with, it was not an easy film-viewing experience; however, Ned Benson sure did a good job at directing but, mostly at writing. Though, I am still quite confounded about what conclusion should be drawn from this strangely sentimental, tragic stricken romantic-drama about a married couple falling apart; which is the reason perhaps not to watch it again, or to skip it altogether. Still, there is a dull-sense of association that one could form while watching this certain production.The film proved to be somewhat a surreal viewing experience when observing closely the treatment of a really difficult, helpless and hopeless situation heightened by the mind's own stress and insecurities, on a general scale. It may not be the best in a while, still it stands quite unconventional just because of the aforementioned, even in its stereotypical plotting.Beautifully portrayed by James McAvoy, and by the formidably outstanding and one of my personal favourites - Jessica Chastain, with both characterisations above mark, but it's actually their on-screen chemistry worth a lot more, and perhaps the best reason to watch this film; and also the other two parts of this trilogy.Rating - 6/10
lasttimeisaw
The sadness of being an incorrigible completist, I have to finish all these three films before writing my review, Ned Benson's ambitious feature-length debut is a post-trauma story of a young couple Conor (McAvoy) and Eleanor (Chastain) in New York after losing their child in an unspecified accident, HIM centres on Conor and HER centres on Eleanor in the same time period, then interweaves these two versions together, there arrives THEM, one can get an overall view of their paralleled life. So basically, I have watched the same movie twice, and certain scenes three times where the path of Conor and Eleanor converges. The premise is soundingly intriguing, as often cornily referred as two separate cerebral hemispheres, the film allows viewers to observe how men and women think and act differently towards the same scenario, in this case, a heartbroken tragedy. In HIM, the movie starts with one of their most intimate memory before their bereavement, an inadvertent thrill in their ordinary life sparks strong romance with Conor amorously says: "There is only one heart in this body, please have mercy on me". Then it jumps to several months of the aftermath, Eleanor uses an extreme method to declare that their life can not sustain as the status quo, they need to take a break. Conor doesn't understand why she needs her alone-time for her grievance, he is equally heartbroken, but he is ready to move on, leaving the tragedy behind with a seal on it, not to mention and keeps living on afterwards. He opens a bar with his best friend Stuart (Hader) and a flirty barmaid Alexis (Arianda) who is ready to "falling in love with him madly if he allows her". Meanwhile his father Spencer (Hinds) owns a successful restaurant named after Conor's mother, whom he dumped ages ago, it is also a thorny decision for him whether or not to swallow his pride to admit failure and take the restaurant inasmuch as his bar is on the brink of bankrupt, it is a privileged struggle as a rich kid's blues. In HER, no romantic prologue, Eleanor is introduced in her abrupt suicidal behaviour, then she returns to her bourgeoisie parents living in the suburb (played by Hurt and Huppert, he is a university professor and she is French), she goes back to the college and takes a class of professor Lillian Friedman (Davis), before long Conor finds out her whereabouts, stalks her in the street, in the classroom and eagerly to reconnect. As Hurt carefully phrases "Tragedy is a foreign country, we don't know how to talk to the natives", Conor's tentative makeup doesn't work, Eleanor needs to be over-indulged in the past for some time before finally moving forward, plus, she can spend all the time she wants in Paris, to heal her wounds, after a whimsical but failed reconnection during a pouring rain and a vis-a-vis opening-up in the middle of the night, it is rather tedious for her to realise that she should take a real break out of the Tri-state area. The disparity erected between each and every individuals cannot be compromised, only when they arrive in the same page with the same pace, they may have a chance to start anew as a couple. As often as he can, Benson intends to throw snappy verbal rejoinders to sound posh or vivacious, but most of the time they are ill-placed ("Now YOU sound maternal" throwaway) and uninspired, as most of the dialogues verge on beating around the bush either without any substantial function or being painstakingly predictable. Yet the two leads is recommendable in any rate, so it is safe to say the film is perfect for McAvoy and Chastain's stalwarts, both set off a full gamut of emotional overhaul and not to mention many close-ups to let their fans luxuriate in the idolatry. Among the eclectic supporting cast, Huppert radiates in every scene simply by holding a glass of red wine in her hand, and Davis thrusts her raw gravitas into her casual bantering with her THE HELP (2010, 8/10) co- star, as an outsider, she is the one who pierces through the surface without any scruples, only if she could have more screen time in it. The indie soundtrack is an understandable trapping of the prevalent mumblecore output, it's ambient, moody and meditative, tailor-made to outline the disposition of the storyline. Collectively speaking, the films attempt to be artistic and unique, it could have hit the bull- eye with all such a talented group, only if it could subtract the permeating tint of narcissism, and conjure up some more salient epiphany. At last, the THEM version abridges some minor sequences and merges HIM and HER with an intact take on the proceedings. There is no new scenes added, so one can choose to watch HIM and HER, or THEM, either is sufficiently competent to disclose its allure and drawbacks.
akash_sebastian
The first time we see the couple (the first scene), they are so much in love. The scene is filled with fun, excitement, and such passionate love for each other; we are easily drawn into that magical moment of theirs. The next time we see these people, it's like their lives have taken a right about turn. Something terrible has occurred in their life, we don't know what exactly. The movie as well as the characters try their best to keep away from that topic (people who have read about the movie might know what has happened, I don't want to spoil it for others). Although the path has been tread before, Ned Benson has woven an intriguing exploration of a couple after a tragedy, and it's great for a debut feature.When something terrible happens in our life, the two things we usually tend to do are: trying our best not to remember it. If we do remember, we try to find a close person around on whom we can shift all the blame and direct all our hatred. The best thing we can do is, accept the situation, and let time take over and do its trick.The topic has been dealt with time and again, in movies as well as novels. With a little more depth, the characters might have been more intriguing. Nonetheless, I was still interested in their lives, and the beautiful one-on-one scenes in the second half were really engaging and emotional. These characters pour their hearts out, either to let it out (and lessen the burden on their mind) or to make the other person feel better. The one which really stands out is the one in which William Hurt (as Eleanor's father) shares an old traumatizing memory with her, involving her; the monologue transports us to the actual place of the event, and we can see the agony in his eyes.The acting by the two leads, Chastain and McAvoy, is brilliant; it's the emotional backbone of the film. Their eyes have such sorrow; though we know so less about the situation, we are intrigued by what has happened. The sometimes-fun-sometimes-supportive characters played by actors like William Hurt, Isabelle Hupert (it was amazing to see this French talent as Eleanor's mother in this film), Viola Davis, Bill Hader, Jess Weixler and Ciarán Hinds are interesting; their presence makes the story more appealing. I wish the characters were developed a little more; I don't know if the Him-Her version has more depth or not, I'm yet to see it.The ending might baffle or annoy some, but to me, it was different and delightful. It conveyed the message it intended to, and the background music by Son Lux was just perfect for it.
ken_bethell
As I have not seen the two productions 'His' and 'Her' prior to viewing 'Them' it is impossible to judge how well the two earlier films were edited to produce 'Them'. Having no preconceived ideas I was at least able to make objective opinion on what was available and what I saw left me a little bewildered but also impressed. Puzzlement maybe is what the director intended and I am not averse to being left in a little confusion when the end credits start rolling. If you can still be talking about a movie 24 hours after having seen it then maybe the director got something right. This slow and almost claustrophobic portrayal of love gone wrong did not strain one's attention span. We are left to believe that the loss of their baby boy was the reason for their estrangement although much is left to conjecture and deliberately so. Her attempted suicide is shown before any reason becomes apparent and it does enhance the interest. Just how many women jump off New York bridges, never mind being rescued with nothing than a bruised arm, is however an aspect that perhaps shouldn't be explored further. The fact that only minimal effort is made to counsel her afterwards was also remiss and gave the impression that it was nothing more serious than an accidental overdose. I felt that an opportunity was missed at this point to have stretched her character but again the director probably thought otherwise. The acting is superb though. Both Chastain and McAvoy are ideally cast as is William Hurt playing the concerned parent in the kind of niche role he seems to have made his own in recent years. Would I recommend it? Yes but only to people I thought might appreciate it. Art house material.
