Basil (1998)

Strong and Moving!

Better Late Then Never

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Note: I normally write some spoilers within my reviews, but don't worry, I try that my "spoilers don't spoil" any important surprise in the plot. That said, here we go...This movie has some good elements that we can notice right from the start like a good setting for the environments, an interesting narrative style and some feeling of nostalgia that accompanies the scenes.Along with many other mysteries, right from the start, we can foresee that the character of the Basil's father, Frederick, must hide a lot of guilt out of either past errors or sins or both, hidden behind all that overwhelming necessity of control. These mysteries add up to a story that reveals and creates new puzzles as it advances. I totally recommend it.I'm conscious that I normally give movies and TV series a higher score that the average given by my IMDb mates, nevertheless I think that 6.1 is way too low for a movie that has so many aspects well taken care of. Maybe I should give a 9 because its not one of my all time favorites, but I decide to give it 10 stars in order to try to compensate that 6.1 that I believe it does not deserve.Thanks for readingDavid del Real. Mexico City, Mexico. Oct, 2017.

A twenty-six year old Claire Forlani might be one of the better reasons to give this film a try. But it's not enough to make you stick with it till the very end. For half way through you may become really challenged, and begging to want to abandon it, if you have not already. Just because it is a period piece, for those partial to them, it's not anywhere near one of better quality. Story-line and acting are just too weak, and it's believed the former detracts from the latter. Except possibly in the one actor's case, for try as I want, I've yet to see her perform with above average ability in any production to date. She's beautiful for sure.. to this day, and most especially here in her late twenties. She makes a great model, as for acting, she's no Jessica Biel.

Please take my advice and don't subject yourself to the horror of watching this movie. I suppose the cover should have warned me, but I thought the adequate cast might save it from the first impression the DVD cover made. I was wrong. There were multiple scenes that I cringed at the dialogue and the acting was horrible. I generally like Jared Leto's choice of roles, but this was a major blunder. It just didn't suit him. In his defense, though, I don't think the script could have been saved by anyone. Basically it was a dismal, fragmented movie that lacked flow from short unimpressive scenes that served no purpose but to hold the frail story together. But if you'd rather, see for yourself. Maybe I missed the deeper meaning... :)

"Basil" is a curiously compelling film. I rented it purely because it "looked Victorian" and I was in the mood for something different. It turned out to be very Victorian, a family saga set somewhere in the 19th Century. Wealthy, but not titled, father has two sons. His pompous and hypocritical Victorian "family values" provide the dramatic force for the story -- otherwise, it's just a bland Harlequin-type romance. The father's confrontations with sons over women end each time with decisions totally alien to our modern sensibilities. Very jarring. Jared Leto as Basil is a little strained in his acting, but always nice to look at. C. Slater is surprisingly (and obviously) good in this "historical" role, and he has a secret which provides a twist near the end. The end itself provides a strange turn that may make you wonder if Basil wouldn't have been happier in a new-age commune in modern New Mexico. Of course, it is basically a chick-flick....