Saturday, October 26, 2013

The Counselor (Review)

Two of Hollywood's finest actors trapped in a film that's just all around miserable.

This movie was perhaps the biggest disappointment I've ever had going to the movies.  Michael Fassbender, Javier Bardem, and Brad Pitt are three of my favorite actors working in Hollywood today (not to mention Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz thrown into the mix).  Pair them with Ridley Scott (whose impressive canon of movies need not be mentioned) and you would think it'd be a match made in cinematic heaven.  In The Counselor's case, it couldn't be further from the truth.  The fatal flaw in the film is its abysmal script.  It's nearly completely devoid of suspense, overly complicated, uninteresting, and heavy-handed to the point of ridicule (hint: three different characters define the word "greed" for the viewer.  Hmm...).  The actors do their very best with what little they are given - Javier Bardem is always enjoyable to watch, even if his characters are typically unsavory.  This had such potential to be an amazing thriller and a new favorite of mine.  Instead, it made every possible wrong choice when it came to plot and fell flat on nearly every level.  It makes me sad how little I enjoyed this film, despite a few shining moments (i.e. the "bolito" was pretty unforgettable, in a good way).  Otherwise, what a complete and utter shame.

Rating: 1.5 out of 5

Note: I don't own the rights to any of the photos on this website.  They're copied here from Google images for entertainment purposes only.

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