In a melodramatic film with an international cast, Massey Tadjedin talks about where wishes lead by the example of a love quartet. Against the backdrop of the landscapes of the New York Soho in the movie Last Night in New York, the Englishwoman Keira Knightley tries to remain faithful to the Australian Sam Worthington, the Frenchman Guillaume Canet prevents her from doing this, and the sexy American Eva Mendes is swimming in the pool.
Features of the production process
The director of Last Night in New York is Massey Tajedin, formerly known in the cinema as a talented screenwriter. The script of the thriller “Jacket” came out from under her pen, in which Knightley shone with Adrian Brody. In her debut directorial work, Massey Tadjedin tried to look into the souls of the main characters, meticulously examined their thoughts, feelings, actions, while not embellishing the flaws. It seems that the director simply watches the characters, gives them free rein, raising the question: can suspicion justify and provoke treason? But due to a lack of experience in directing, Massey does not reach either the knowledge of human nature or the degree of emotion. Therefore, the tape received conflicting reviews. Last Night in New York has an IMDb rating of 6.60.
Compromise
The film "Last Night in New York," many filmmakers are positioning as a fashionable compromise today between commercial and copyright films. In the tape, the bet on the main idea, the construction in which the theme is revealed is a mosaic of situations and images, the presence in the atmosphere of something intuitive, inexpressible in words. At the same time, her staging is chamber, only four main protagonists, close-ups, a static camera. Separate monologues of heroes are performed with the expectation of a sensitive perception by the audience.
Although the sensitive topic of adultery does not shine with innovation at all, the picture is intriguing and keeps in suspense. In the reviews of “Last Night in New York”, the project merits include inviting night landscapes and inspiring musical accompaniment, which contributes to the immersion of the viewer in a romantic atmosphere. The bewitching leitmotif is largely due to the composer Clint Mansell, known as the author of the music of the films “Black Swan”, “Requiem for a Dream” and many others.
Short storyline
The plot of "Last Night in New York" introduces the audience to the main characters - the married couple Michael (Sam Worthington) and Joanna (Keira Knightley), who, despite the four years they have lived, still love each other. However, in rare annoying moments, disagreements arise between the spouses, and it happens that Joanna recalls her French ex-lover Alex (Guillaume Canet).
Joanna and Alex survived a tumultuous romance in the past that never got a decent ending. Usually nostalgia quickly disappears immediately after the reconciliation of the spouses, but not this time. The girl learns about her husband's business trip, on which he goes with an unusually attractive colleague Laura (Eva Mendes). As soon as the couple said goodbye, the handsome Alex materialized from Joanna's dreams. While the husband, not sure about the advisability of adultery, swims with Laura in the pool, Joanna gets the opportunity to put an end to the relationship of the past years.
Genre delights
If you believe the reviews, “Last Night in New York” is more like a classic theatrical production than a full-length feature film. Contributes to this opinion, the director’s efforts to protect his brainchild from the slightest presence of special effects. Massey Tadjedin has created a tinkling story of purity in which there is nothing superfluous. An exception can only be the image of an overly meticulous literary agent, asking the main character when she first met the details of her personal life.
The main intrigue of the tape, according to reviewers, comes down to elementary questions: will adultery occur, and if someone changes someone, in what order? At the same time, against the background of the unshakable “happy end”, which almost all romcoms go out to hire with enviable regularity treat the viewer, this alignment can be quite exciting. And the genre "Last Night in New York" is not so uniquely defined. The picture is positioned as a melodrama, while it includes elements of tragicomedy and pure drama.
Compared
The debutant in the direction of Massey Tadjedin, according to cinema experts, copes with her task no worse than one of the few lucky winners of all the major awards of the American film industry Mike Nichols, who clashed the interests of Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Clive Owen and Jude Law in the psychological drama "Proximity" . True, the events of his project unfold in London, the duration of the action is limited to two days, and the characters change partners with dizzying dexterity. But, as the reviews about "Last Night in New York" say, Tajerin approaches the problems of love geometry with real female insidiousness. Out of male solidarity, Nichols would never have forced his hero to choose between Eva Mendes and Kira Knightley. And Massey openly demonstrates the struggle of all four heroes with temptation.
Cast
Despite the fact that not every spectator will find a character in the picture with whom he can associate himself or at least empathize with him, the actors of “Last Night in New York” were praised for their demonstrated skill. All roles played beautifully. The quartet of protagonists is convincing, reliable and emotional. Even Sam Worthington (Avatar), whose talent after the “Clash of the Titans” many doubted.
Especially brilliantly embodied the image of Joanna charming Kira Knightley ("Pirates of the Caribbean", "Anna Karenina"). The actress in the image is very expressive, it is not surprising that in the States her name serves as an absolute guarantee of the box office of any film. Although Joanna is not exactly her type, but Kira really wanted to prove herself in a dramatic role, and the producers were not against getting a star of this level in their project. Guillaume Canet (“Beach”, “Unsinkable”) and Eva Mendes (“Once in Mexico”, “The Ghost Rider”) were not inferior in acting to their colleagues, adding realism to what is happening.
Reason for going to the cinema
Despite positive reviews, Last Night in New York was not able to get close to the commercially successful Proximity. The box office exceeded the initial budget, however, the rental tape did not explode, although it was not without advantages.
Firstly, Keira Knightley is really amazing, some critics tend to rank the image of Joanna as one of the best roles of the performer. Secondly, the final film, which cannot be compared, of course, with the early works of M. N. Shyamalan, nevertheless excites the audience’s imagination and is not predicted until the last frame. And not every Hollywood love story gets such praise. Thirdly, the ups and downs in the fate of the heroes, their motives, actions and actions are very similar to real life, which can become a pretext for visiting a movie theater and watching a picture.
Recommendations
To recommend the film to view a wide audience will be quite bold. Under the harsh Russian reality, watching this serious and deep picture in the cinema can turn into a disappointment for many. "Last Night" is a project for an adult enough audience. Youth and adolescents may not like him. It's not about the flaws of the project, just the teenagers will not understand the essence of the very complex and delicate relationships of the characters.
In addition, critics emphasize in their reviews of "Last Night in New York" that the film is not intended for the category of viewers who quickly get bored with endless dialogs. And the brainchild of Massey Tadjedin, although staged and played perfectly, is saturated with them to the eyeballs.