MAPS TO THE STARS
**
Tapping into the seediness of life without offering substance.
With Julianne Moore picking up a Best Actress at Cannes for this one, you are really set up for a feast of something special.
But remember it’s Cronenberg who can veer dangerously from spectacular to plain silly. Unfortunately, this one falls into the latter category. Yes as the blurb says, it is a film that shows you how scary the average human being can be, but this director has a knack of sometimes indulging the tacky side of life while not giving much weight to the substance and then he loses a large number of his viewers.
He can at times capture the seediness of life with a punch that leaves you breathless because of the reality, the horror and the sheer stupidity of people. That’s why you still keep watching.
But here it seems he went on a spree of family failure and relied on his cast, who are pretty special, to tell the story in a way that makes sense. It doesn’t. In today’s world, most people would be more savvy and not fall so easily into the expected traps. If what you want is to empathise with a family who can’t seem to make their way through any-thing, then this isn’t it. Not even Moore will pull you through this one. There’s not much even the best actor can do with a bad script.
And to think she’s just walked off with the Oscar for best actress. What a mess and what a loss. Instead, try one of Moore’s other movies like her Oscar-winning performance in Still, Alice or a fine portrayal of a lush in A Single Man or the hilarious Boogie Nights.
You will be much better served.
Diane de Beer