The Lovers (2015)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

TIME TRAVELLER is an unusual time travel type movie starring Josh Hartnett, ill at ease in a role which requires him to put on a British accent. The bizarre thing about this is that the present day story is merely a framing device that feels like it gets in the way of the main tale, a typical historical romance set in 18th century India. I think a straight-up historical story would have worked a lot better. As usual, the film suffers from heavy-handed scripting, presenting stereotypical British soldiers plundering their way through the Indian subcontinent and asking us to believe in a fierce warrior-woman who's more than a match for her male counterparts (yeah, right). The director isn't too bad but the story never goes very far, making this a slight effort.

SPOILER ALERT - Not much of a spoiler, but I mention a life changing event for an unspecified character. ;) I think that some viewers gave this a 3 out of 10 due to the scenery, but this was not supposed to be a travelogue. Some commented that they liked the music, but I felt it was a ripoff of the "Last Samurai." Hartnett and Basu had negligible chemistry together, but the writing was hollow throughout the film, so the shortcomings of the film cannot be blamed entirely on them. I felt Hartnett was the better actor by far. Basu, and more the director perhaps, try to evoke emotion through her by having her stare out into space over long periods of time that were almost excruciating to watch.I don't believe I've ever watched a film in which a major character died, when I felt zero reaction beyond some disgust at the means of death. I suspect that is because I felt the character deserved to die at that point, as they were so awfully written. The lines uttered by the Indian guru at the end were cheesy. The relationship between Hartnett's American lover and him was never established, so it was impossible to connect with all the crying on her part. The movie was a mishmash of British colonialism, which was extremely boring by the way, and the two relationships of a British soldier/sea explorer both lacking real connection. This movie is a masterpiece of boredom. I've seen much better Hallmark movies. This film should be watched only if you are already in severe pain, which can only be alleviated through distraction. Although it's not very distracting, come to think of it. It could ease your pain by putting you to sleep though, through a combination of mental and emotional boredom, beautiful scenery, and mournful music . ;)

2nd review ever, only to shove it in all the pompous amateur critics on this site who almost made me turn away from this entertaining adventure-rom....yes not everything is spot on, mainly how the ring ended up on the ship....use your imagination folks, if any of these reviewers paid attention , the main characters brother was under his direct command .....ya so hard to figure out....disregard the other reviews who hate all but masterpieces...solid heartwarming movie with adventures action and drama...and the cinematography is breathtaking. must add....historical fans don't worry, the modern plot comprises 10 min or so of the movie and could have been left out...cheers to a farm in Massachusetts!

This is essentially an epic love story which was supposed to have transcended time and space. Josh Hartnett plays dual characters: one as a diver/archaeologist type in the 21st Century and the second being a Scotsman working under the British colonials in the Indian subcontinent in the 17th Century. Tamsin Egerton plays his wife in the 21st Century and Bipasha Basu plays his love interest in 17th Century India. Having read an interview by director Roland Joffé about the film, I was expecting much more involvement of quantum physics to be present in the film. Not necessarily the entire film to be explaining the theory but at least more play on parallel universe and different realities. I was expecting more sci-fi along the lines of the Source Code or Interstellar. Instead what we got was Titanic crossed with Bollywood. If you are a sci-fi fan then you may be disappointed but if you are a romance fan then you may enjoy the film. Think Time Traveller's Wife, The Age of Adaline and other paranormal romances.