Chromophobia (2006)

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Absolutely Fantastic

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

Renting this DVD in 2010, the film encapsulated the decade of the noughties in all its extreme materialism, consumerism, and negation of personal relationships. To begin with, I thought the film was going to be too depressing and overly precious in style and content, but as the themes developed, the intricacies and subtleties of character and plot wove carefully into a seamless whole, and the result was a satisfying, if excruciatingly cynical, survey of London society at the beginning of the 21st century. As it is necessarily a work of fiction, and not a reality show, the characters were allowed their melodrama, such as Penelope Cruz playing a prostitute dying of cancer, inexpertly 'helped' in her distress by a wonderfully subtle performance by Rhys Ifans as a social worker. Some of the darkest scenes in this dark, dark story, depicted the state of the social work system and its inefficient, uncaring way of managing those in need of the service - a scathing critique worthy of Dickens. In many ways, this film worked like a novel - it had a beginning, middle, and end; the structure was deliberate and meticulous, the style perfected, and the whole brought together by a superb cast of actors. Kristin Scott-Thomas is, to me, one of the best British actresses ever; she can play any part with subtlety and nuance and express the minutest detail of emotion with a change in her eye expression, or a slight movement of her mouth. She is painfully affecting as the ignored and bored wife, shopping expensively to no purpose, neglecting her son because she has neglected herself, feeling frustrated, and considering breast implants to restore her self-esteem (a knock at the prevalence of cosmetic surgery in present society). Her performance, understated, with more expression than dialogue, presages her Oscar-worthy acting in 'I Have Loved You So Long'.Having just seen Damien Lewis in a bravura performance as Alceste on the London stage in 'The Misanthrope' - a brilliant re-working of Moliere's play by Martin Crimp - I could see the origins of what he brought to the character of Alceste in the way he played Marcus in this film. All Marcus really wanted was to play the guitar in a band, not waste his life in the corporate world of high legal protection of privileged and corrupt professionals.Ben Chaplin, Ralph Fiennes (playing himself as usual, but effectively), Ian Holm, and Harriet Walter, were all equally good and as the disparate characters weave in and out of each others' lives, the ensemble piece comes together in a moving and impressive drama. I was not sure about the redemption ending, but maybe Martha Fiennes felt the film was just too deeply dark not to have some kind of cathartic closing. After all, Dickens does the same and we love him for that. So you will love this film. Stay with it: you will not be disappointed.

SPOILERSAfter seeing many negative reviews of the film, I was not expecting it to be that great, but I'm a fan of some of the actors in the film, so I figured I'd give it a go. I was pleasantly surprised, but I don't feel my opinion was heightened by lower expectations. I think it was a truly good film, overall. There were a few slow areas and scenes which were heavy handed (either by director or actor) but the main storyline was engaging and easy for most people who have any shred of introspection to relate to.Damian Lewis and Kristin Scott Thomas were excellent, as usual. Both stayed admirably true to both of their characters, both of whom are a mass of complexities and contradictions under the surface, and also appear at the outset to be fairly one sided. I felt that there was a good representation of when you meet someone in real life and know only surface and appearance related info about that person....slowly, the story builds as you get to know them and all the facets start to show. and really were perfectly true to their characters.Ben Chaplin plays an old friend with altrustic intentions on a general level, but sinister ones where actual lives are concerned. His sudden appearance in a friend's life, deception and betrayal are excellently plotted and echo of the very best of Shakespeare. This storyline and performance is a strong-point.Penelope Cruz as a dying call girl basically recycled her performance from every tragic young woman role she's been in. I didn't really care for her acting, save for certain scenes, notably the end of her love scene with Sir Ian Holm (excellent, restrained and poignant as usual in his role as pinched, ineffective patriarch.) Rhys Ifans was also quite good, but I felt the attachment he formed was quite quick and seemed somewhat forced.There was a surprising amount of humor in this film. In particular, I found myself laughing out loud at the furtive, awkward sex scene between Lewis and Scott Thomas as well as their verbal fumblings as they try to steer their way through a terse, bitter marriage.Not surprising, but appreciated (by me anyway) was some of the subtle undertones of the film, which is basically about a whole bunch of interconnected people who really have no REAL connections to each other (including those who can cast away real connections for the sake of convenience or personal gain.) Early on, a character who will end up in jail plays the Clash's "I Fought the Law" and that song is played again in a crucial dramatic scene in the background. Also, a cast off hardly worn red dress floats through London from the home of a wealthy, seemingly privileged through a charity shop to a woman who wears the dress on her dying night. There's something to be said for the literal visual impact of the red dress being passed between strangers, but it also speaks eloquently of the larger issue of fashion and consumerism as a defining factor for some very unhappy people, which is a theme in the film as well.All told, a well crafted film that only suffered minorly from vague heavy handedness. The acting was excellent and it was most definitely an enjoyable watch. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to connect, relate and enjoy.

That many reputable actors cannot have fallen for a bad script. Well... I'm not sure what it proves about those actor's judgment. They did attract the financiers and the distributors. I'm not sure what this proves about these people either. The result is quite mesmerizing: a lousy star-studded student film. A new sub-genre of its own. The director tried very hard to be profound and disturbing etc. achieving absolutely nothing except boredom (the film's not even pompous, it does not have enough style), a sad and depressing absence of inspiration which you eventually find revolting because of all the talented film makers out there who do not have access to A list cast and funding. Nepotism rules in the movie industry. Chromophobia is another proof.

I had the unique chance of watching this movie at it's midnight premiere at Cannes, and this engaging story made the evening even more complete. Chromophobia is a depiction of how several upper-class Brits have become so obsessed with material things and their careers that they have become completely detached from the bare necessities: love, professional integrity, friendship and even their own children. Each of the characters will betray one of those ideals, and they will see their lives and relationships come crashing down. But while most of the movie is alienating, depressing and leaves you almost begging for some relief (it is there, you will laugh occasionally), in the end there is redemption: not in a glorious comeback or victory, but in the simple dignity of picking up the pieces and carrying on with a brave face. The train station scene is especially impressive, showing the sudden determination and loyalty in the main characters when faced with the ruin of their lives. Both chilling and warming: this is one solid piece of British drama.