Actress Emilia Clark became famous for her outstanding role as the inimitable Daenerys Targaryen in the cult TV series Game of Thrones. However, in recent years she has been actively trying to build a career outside this project, participating simultaneously in the filming of several very ambitious films.
The film "Voice of Stone", the reviews of which, alas, are disappointing, was initially positioned as a strong dramatic picture with an admixture of detective and thriller. Read about what came of this.
A bit about the film
The movie drama was released in Russia on May 18, 2017. The world premiere took place almost a month earlier: April 20.
The director of the tape is Eric D. Howell, who can hardly be called famous and outstanding, since he does not even have a dozen full-length films on his account. Andrew Shaw and Silvio Raffo, who also can not boast of a large track record, worked on the script of the picture.
Despite the rather high ratings of expectations and high-profile statements of the creators, the film turned out to be rather mediocre. This is noted by professional critics in their reviews of the tape "Voice of the stone." Reviews about the film are really not the most comforting.
Plot
The film takes place in the middle of the 20th century in the Italian province of Tuscany, in a tribal castle remote from the settlements. The son of its owner, Jacob, who recently lost his mother, needs help, because due to stress and grief that has occurred in the family, he no longer talks and behaves strangely.
Verena is a nanny who has a special talent. She is able to return to normal life children with mental disorders. With her care, a non-standard approach and the ability to find common ground with children, she attracted the attention of Klaus (Jacob's father). He invites the girl to his work. She does not even know what difficulties and trials she will have to face when accepting Klaus's proposal.
As it turns out later, the boy vowed silence until his mother’s spirit returned to life. Soon, Verena begins to suspect that something is going wrong in this castle, and the ghost of the deceased mother of the child intends to move into her body.
"Voice of the stone": viewers reviews
Despite the fact that the tape at the production and promotion stages showed great promise and many viewers were looking forward to it, it received a low rating. The picture can not be called completely failed, but it clearly did not live up to expectations.
Due to the fact that the audience was very upset, because their expectations were not fulfilled, numerous reviews and comments about the film "Voice of Stone" began to appear on the Web. Reviews are mostly negative or restrained.
Viewers note that the characters' characters are poorly designed in the picture. Only the image of Verena is fully disclosed. In addition, a weak plot, in which the so-called suspense is almost completely absent, that is, a state of anxious expectation and anxiety, which is an integral part of the thriller and drama. Judging by the reviews of the audience, this feeling does not occur when viewing.
There are, of course, other complaints that the film is abundantly gifted with, but viewers still note positive aspects. Only thanks to them the film did not become completely disastrous. Today at the most popular cinema resource “Kinopoisk” the rating of the film “Voice from a stone”, according to reviews, is about 4.9 points out of 10. Most of the viewers were hooked by the ending of the film “Voice from a stone”. In the reviews, viewers rate it as unexpected and exciting. She certainly prompts philosophical reflection.
Voice of Stone: Criticism
Unlike amateurs, professionals turned out to be absolutely adamant, smashing the film clean. If you can still find positive or neutral reviews among the audience, then critics have almost none.
Reviews of film critics about “Voice of the stone” turned out to be very severe, since they did not see the drama announced by the creators. The film did not catch their attention and feelings.
Critics, in addition to the shortcomings that the viewers indicate, add a number of shortcomings. These include poor acting, torn editing, inappropriate and sometimes completely inappropriate musical elements. These are far from all of the problematic points that critics emphasize in Voice of Stone. According to reviews, it becomes clear that the film was absolutely not liked by connoisseurs of good cinema.
Even the presence in the caste of the promising actress and star of Game of Thrones Emilia Clark does not improve the situation of the film. Critics say that she is not in her place, she can’t cope with this complex dramatic role, and therefore looks unnatural and implausible. They believe that the young actress can not move away from her cult role as Daenerys, so they hardly fit into the images of new characters.
Interesting Facts
The slogan of the film says: "Give your soul." It fully corresponds to the plot of the film, but it sounds somehow rustic.
An interesting fact is that this is the first full-length film directed by Eric D. Howell, in the piggy bank of which there are not even ten paintings. Perhaps, precisely because of the film crew’s lack of experience in creating full-length films, the picture was not of the best quality.
Initially, Maggie Gyllenhaal claimed the role of Verena (nanny) , but she could not take part in the filming, as they were constantly transferred. The actress went into another project, and her place was taken by E. Clark. Who knows how the attitude to the film could have changed if Gyllenhaal had starred there. Perhaps she would have coped with the difficult role better, as she has more experience in this genre than Clark.
Film value
The film "Voice of a stone", the description and reviews of which are presented in this article, is a very controversial film that has both positive and negative qualities. The fact that the film was received not only warmly not only by critics, but also by the audience, does not mean that there are no positive aspects in the film.
Of course, the contribution of this particular picture to the modern film industry is not too great. However, the film may become the starting line in the career of the director, for whom the film actually became the debut in a big movie. Screenwriters also tried their hand for the first time in creating such a powerful project. Even actress E. Clark does not yet have a long track record. In addition to the series "Game of Thrones", she still could not prove herself anywhere. In this regard, the film may be the starting point for the development of the dramatic role of the actress.
Conclusion
The film “Voice from a stone” was shot based on the novel of the same name by Silvio Raffo. The creators declared it as a psychological thriller with a dramatic basis. The atmospheric trailer and soundtrack grabbed the audience's attention and kept her in a state of intense anticipation. Someone was satisfied with what happened, and someone was deeply disappointed. One of the viewers called the film a dish made from the best ingredients. However, the cook forgot to add salt to it, which makes it fresh and boring. Like it or not, it's up to you to decide, but for a start it's worth watching a movie.