FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
Directed by: Anthony Minghella. Produced by: Albert Berger, Sydney Pollack & Ron Yerxa. Written by: Anthony Minghella, based on the novel by Charles Frazier. Director of Photography: John Seale. Edited by: Walter Murch. Music by: Gabriel Yared. Released by: Miramax. Country of Origin: USA. 155 min. Rated: R. With: Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Renée Zellweger. DVD Features: Commentary by writer/director Anthony Minghella & editor Walter Murch. Climbing Cold Mountain documentary. Making-of special "A Journey to Cold Mountain". "Words & Music of Cold Mountain". Deleted scenes. Sacred harp history. Storyboard comparisons.
A brutal depiction of
survival and the horrors of war, the 1997 bestseller and National Book
Award-winning novel
is faithfully brought to the screen. In an antebellum North Carolina town, a quiet
and eligible
carpenter, Inman (Law), falls in love at first sight with the refined and
unmarried
preacher's daughter, Ada (Kidman). Their courtship is cut short
by the Civil War, and while Inman goes off to war Ada tries to manage the
farm once her father (Donald Sutherland) dies. Keeping her home fire burning
during wartime is difficult until a drifter, Ruby (Zellweger), comes along to save
the farm. With her feisty cornpone
manner, she also offers a good share of welcomed comic relief. Both women must
protect their land from the ravenous and pillaging Home Guard, which is gaining
control of Cold Mountain.
Meanwhile, war-weary and wounded Inman deserts the army, and
the film follows his episodic, and often engrossing, odyssey back to his
sweetheart.
Law makes a fine Inman and seems a much better choice than originally-cast Tom
Cruise. But the ubiquitous Kidman suffers
from more scowling and pouting than Scarlett O'Hara. Otherwise, she does an
admirable job with the role, genteel Southern accent and all. Beside
Zellweger, the most memorable performances are the cameos that pepper
the film: Natalie Portman as a war widow, Kathy Baker as Ada's kind neighbor,
and Philip Seymour Hoffman, way over the top as a wayward preacher. This
handsomely made wartime romance should appeal to fans of The English
Patient (also by director Minghella).
DVD Extras: The features are quite comprehensive and don’t disappointment. Climbing Cold
Mountain covers the entire duration of the production, from scouting to publicity, and
features interviews taken during the filming without the benefit of hindsight. This makes for an
interesting perspective, allowing the viewer to understand the construction of the film rather than
just offering recollections of the crew after the production. (The cast and crew battled weather and
language barriers on location in Romania during a complicated filming schedule spanning over
150 days.) The commentary is worthwhile, but not necessary with the documentaries included. Lisette Johnson
|