The craftsmanship of empty watch

Therese 2022-04-20 09:01:44

Text / Dream Poetry

Natalie Portman's superb acting skills have become a double-edged sword in "The First Lady". On the one hand, the film's acting skills are impeccable, and the director uses a lot of close-up shots. It's about trying to elevate that, but the loose rhythm on the other side, the flat characters, make the movie just a Natalie show.

As a biographical film, "The First Lady" does not start with Jacqueline's equally legendary life trajectory. The film is only based on her as Kennedy's wife, from the first three days of Kennedy's assassination to his assassination. Then to the funeral, through this brief but complex and changeable process, the director is committed to conquering the audience with Natalie's excellent acting skills, a fragile but strong, sad but strong first. The image of a lady is also in line with Oscar's value orientation, but this kind of propositional composition is difficult for people to get much emotional recognition.

Throughout the whole film, the most intuitive image the film gave me was not Natalie Portman's acting responsibility, but the length of the film, the director's excessive reliance on long shots, and even forgot that the narrative is the most important part of the film. The point is that in the nearly two-hour movie, except for the scene where President Kennedy was stabbed, there was almost no dramatic tension in the whole film. Dedicated to proving what an outstanding actress Natalie Portman is, the over-the-top form turns out to be an embarrassing failure of the film.

Through the screen, the first lady under Natalie's acting skills has almost nothing to move people's hearts. Except for her, all the characters including Kennedy in the movie are flat, and even Kennedy is only in the A few strokes in the film are passed by, so the film can't see what the first lady really should reflect, where she is as a wife and a mother, and at the same time, the director Pabu who wants to break the traditional biopic model Ro Larraine, although ingenious in narrative at first glance, the messy time line, the jumping editing, from beginning to end, did not allow the film's emotions to form a real torrent.

"The First Lady" is a work that almost matches all Oscar standards. It has the director's desire to make a new attempt on genre films and the excellent acting skills of Natalie Portman, but the film did not impress in the end. I didn't even have an expression that could make me feel wonderful, too "craftsmanship", so that the film left only an empty craftsmanship.

For more exciting content or communication, please pay attention to Menglijun's WeChat public account

View more about Jackie reviews

Extended Reading
  • Oliver 2022-03-21 09:02:04

    The English title is Jackie, not "First Lady" or even "Jacqueline", but "Jackie" - the nickname of the legendary woman. This is a very personal film, LaRaine's close-up focus on the former first lady's grief and determination, vulnerability and strength after her husband's loss, Natalie Portman does not look like her, but she Imitation of voice and body is amazing and vivid, this is not just a biography, but more like an elegy.

  • Jerald 2022-03-22 09:01:58

    Celebrity biopics can be regarded as lovable traditional award-winning themes, but the sensationalism is not in-depth, the story itself is quite boring, and many details are easily overlooked, and it is not as good as the director's other Neruda this year; How to say, the first half is very inconsistent, like a Taylor Swift who looks like Anne Hathaway, but the second half is not so inconsistent, I guess I am used to it.

Jackie quotes

  • The Priest: Take comfort in those memories.

    Jackie Kennedy: I can't. They're mixed up with all the others.

  • [first lines]

    The Journalist: Mrs. Kennedy? They told me to come up. And I'm so sorry for your loss.

    Jackie Kennedy: Have you read what they've been writing? Krock and Merriman and all the rest?

    The Journalist: Yes, I have.

    Jackie Kennedy: Merriman's such a bitter man. It's been just one week. Already they're treating him like some dusty old artifact to be shelved away. That's no way to be remembered.

    The Journalist: And how would you like him remembered, Mrs. Kennedy?

    Jackie Kennedy: [stammering] I...

    Jackie Kennedy: You understand that I will be editing this conversation just in case I don't say exactly what I mean?

    The Journalist: With all due respect, that seems very unlikely, Mrs. Kennedy.

    [pause]

    The Journalist: Right. Okay. Uh, so this will be your own version of what happened?

    Jackie Kennedy: Exactly. Come in.