Directed by:
James GrayCinematography:
Joaquin Baca-AsayCast:
Joaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Paltrow, Vinessa Shaw, Isabella Rossellini, Elias Koteas, John Ortiz, Moni Moshonov, Marion McCorry, Samantha Ivers (more)Plots(1)
Two Lovers is a romantic drama set in New York City. It tells the story of Leonard, an attractive but depressed young man who moves back in with his parents following a recent heartbreak. An aspiring photographer, Leonard works part-time at his father’s dry-cleaners. His concerned parents try to set him up with Sandra, the sweet and caring daughter of a close family friend. A big family dinner serves as their introduction and Leonard arranges to see her again. Then late one night Leonard looks out his bedroom window and notices a ravishing young woman he's never seen before. Michelle recently moved into an apartment in his family’s building - an apartment paid for by the wealthy married man she’s seeing. Leonard is instantly attracted to this beautiful, volatile woman, an attraction that quickly grows into obsession. He ardently pursues her in the hope she will break off her affair. As Michelle begins to fall for Leonard and Leonard discovers hidden depths in Sandra, he is forced to make an impossible decision... (Wild Bunch Distribution)
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Reviews (3)
I'm always surprised by what kinds of films can be hidden under the genre label of romantic comedy. In this case, Joaquin Phoenix is training for his role in Joker, or a man with unstable mental health. Gwyneth Paltrow and Vinessa Shaw are just opposites. It's not a gentle film, and there is nothing in it to make you laugh. It's a film from a collection of observations from life. It’s very realistic in terms of the situations and in the life choices, and perhaps touchingly naive in the finale.
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A ninimalistic (setting, location, music) intimate drama with character actors (best one being Vinessa Shaw) and an average plot. James Gray has a talent for developing personal connections and somewhat manages to stay on the track of realism. Based on the trailer, I expected more genuine emotions and fewer positive moments, but in the end, it was exactly the opposite. It’s still a well-thought-out piece, expressed clearly, and the plot is presented comprehensibly, in a sufficiently dense form. Definitely a rising trend.
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Two Lovers is a slow, cold and in some ways very classically styled romance that deals not only with love, but also with suicide attempts, bipolar disorder and abortion. The tragedy of the characters consists in the awareness of how they are (in their own words) “fucked up”, in spite of which they want to be supportive of each other. However, it will be difficult for two unstable individuals to carry on a relationship. Gray uses long, drawn-out shots that give us enough time and space to penetrate the world of the troubled protagonists. That is not easy to do, as the film combines the linear development of the story with variations of certain situations (with one girlfriend, with another girlfriend, with Leonard in a manic phase, with Leonard in a depressive phase), so in places it may seem that the narrative is not going anywhere. I appreciate the fact that today someone has the courage to shoot mature dramas that the viewer has to meet halfway, though I also understand why there are not more films likes this in America today than there were in the 1970s. We have become accustomed to unpretentiousness and working with allusions, and it is thus more difficult for us to get in tune with such a style. 75%
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Gallery (33)
Photo © 2929 Productions
![Two Lovers - Making of](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/160/449/160449818_29f93f.jpg)
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