5 to 7 (2014)

Thanks for the memories!

One of the worst movies I've ever seen

Absolutely Fantastic

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

3/16/17. I wanted to watch this because I like Anton Yelchin. The fact he died so young from a tragic accident made me want to catch everything he did. Sadly, Yelchin came off as being somewhat awkward in this somewhat implausible romance. Perhaps people living in such circles act this way, but just seemed a bit unrealistic.

You expect a romance movie to have something to say about romance, the idea of romance or love. And while this movie has a lot of cheesy dialogue that would point in that direction, it ultimately has nothing to say. And when a romance movie has nothing to say about romance, you would typically expect to see a kind of chemistry that draws you in. And while the female lead attempts to portray this pretty well, the male lead appears to have no idea that his character is in a romance, let alone is in love. And when a movie like this has nothing to say about romance, and has precious little chemistry between the leads, you would at least expect it to have a smart script. Alas, the dialogue leads from one laughably clichéd line to another. The weirdly pointless bench taglines portrayed as "the best writing in NYC" should give us a clue about where the script is going and how the narrative will play out.Not to say this movie isn't worthwhile in other ways. The character of Jane, the editor, may be the only 3-dimensional one here, and she completely takes over many of the scenes -- of the precious few she's in. Her absence is sorely noticeable when she's not there. The male lead's parents, while not quite as fleshed out as we'd like, are nevertheless extremely enjoyable. The story itself is nothing special -- it plays out as melodrama (stock characters in a situation that forces them to act in stock ways) which isn't necessarily bad if it's well done, but it just isn't.Something else to mention about the story: The universe in which this story exists is one that rewards and ultimately revolves around complete sincerity. This is intensely aggravating, not just because it makes the whole thing unrealistic, but also as it implies that the people here have no interior lives. That the only thing that matters is what they have chosen to do in a completely sincere manner. That is, the important thing is not who they are, but what they do. For a purportedly delicate character study, this is a weird narrative choice.There is one piece of irony that is probably not intentional, but which completely destroys any integrity this movie may have had at one point, and the following isn't a spoiler. The line "What would you do for love?" is intended to apply only to the woman and her life decisions, but it ultimately applies to the man as well. Because his own implicit answer to this question is what leads this movie to go into the depths of self-indulgent pretension. All of which could be forgiven if any of the other faults mentioned above were also addressed.

I usually sample reviews across the spectrum to get a feel for the worthiness of a flick. I failed to do so last night, and fell for the exuberance of the first 3 gushing raters, who wrote of well-developed characters and other gems. Being in the mood for something French must have dulled my vigilance. For a spot-on professional critique read Daniel Walber's (FilmSchoolRejects). I read it the following morning to confirm that it's not just me growing old and bitter. If you are looking for a visually pleasing, mindless stream of bubbles to pass your evening - this movie may work for you. All scenery is nicely filmed; no argument there. However, if the thought of watching yet another episode of the lifestyles of rich & famous with no point to it whatsoever makes you noxious - don't do it! There are no characters in this movie, but there are plenty of cultural clichés that will make you puke; I promise.

This is overall a pleasant, and well-made film.Yet some of the changes in the character Brian are a bit sudden and dramatic, especially in his "conservative" attitudes and "ethics".It took Brian three weeks to overcome his "ethics" dilemma and start an affair with Arielle. Later, $6,000 gave him the "courage" to make a decision that would end Arielle's marriage, and destroy the home of her two kids. I assume that, by then, "ethics" is somehow, miraculously not an issue any more?! I wonder which was actually the "solution" to the "ethics issue", love or lust?Other than this small debacle though, Brian has the good fortune of living among decent people (I mean, all of them), even though some are mildly annoying (e.g., his parents). In real-life though, when finding out the son's girlfriend is a married French woman with two kids, some parents may start yelling, or at least stand up and leave. Admittedly, the noticeable absence of jerks does make this movie a more pleasant experience, but it is also a reminder of how different the real world is.