Touches You

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

I feel like this isn't what I expected at all. I was waiting for something mysterious, something interesting...literally made me sleep.

In the beginning it was sparkling with mysterious vibes. But the flavor went numb vanishing slowly but surely in the ambient sound.One thing good about this movie that the GAY theme is so subtly put in the form of frogs. I wonder why American movies must include gay theme on their stories, not everyone is willing to watch them. Am I right? Mind control eh?So, back to the movie, this one is a full frontal feminist freight train. The woman was portrayed as an amazing genius character switcher. And the man was an ordinary working class numb skull. Too stupid to see the big picture.I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but the idea of the lead woman being able to do what she does that is quite interesting. Or not at all, because to manipulate people is human nature some had it big some small. I just think this woman was crazy and heartless, like so many of them these days, cold and unforgiving and loveless.Amen

Maybe I was in the mood for it, but I found this little movie intriguing. It's certainly different. I didn't read anything too profound into it; I just think it was an interesting story beautifully played.It seems to have bored some people stiff and the critical response according to Wikipedia was mixed to negative - I guess they weren't in the mood for it.Alice (Rachel Weisz), a woman who disappeared years before, returns and meets her old boyfriend Tom (Michael Shannon). We learn that she has changed identities and occupations many times, acquiring new skills and friends, only to suddenly leave them all behind to adopt a totally new identity. This sort of thing usually has sinister undertones often involving serial killers and people held captive in cellars, but here there is nothing evil at all, only feelings of sadness for a lost relationship and Tom's sense of purposelessness in his life. There are a few more layers to it, and Alice's self indulgent philosophy is questioned. There is one telling sequence when Alice and Tom help an older couple played by Danny Glover and Kathy Bates. Tom is invited into Alice's world of identity changing almost like in theatre sports where the players are given a character and then have to improvise like crazy; it unlocks something repressed in Tom.As Alice's story unfolds I thought of that line in Kurt Vonnegut's "Mother Night" - "You must be careful what you pretend to be, because in the end you are what you pretend to be".The film has a seductive mood aided by an atmospheric score and doesn't outstay its welcome. I won't spoil the ending, but it felt right.I'm glad I didn't read the critics first - "Complete Unknown" was a complete surprise.

I watched this movie because I've often thought about how great it would be to keep switching lives the way "Alice" did in this film. Despite a beautiful performance by Rachel Weisz,I felt that the script and therefore the film, was limited. It seems like the kind of film in which the book, if there is one, would be much better.The film made it seem as if Alice's changes were all about moving from job to job and location to location. It reminded me of when people say "Don't define me by what I do for a living" because that's what Alice appeared to do. She was a singer, a biologist, a teacher, an artist, etc. What was not touched upon was her relationships. At one point Tom asks her if she had been married; she says no. I would have asked "Did you have any relationships?" suspecting the answer might be yes, but none lasting. The message came across that yes it's exciting, romantic and adventurous to keep on moving and changing one's home and one's job, but it's doable only by being completely selfish and beholden to no one. In just about all Alice's actions, including at the party, she seemed to not care at all about anyone but herself. Perhaps that's the only way one can live such a self-oriented life... unless you happen to have a partner who is just like you and lives life as your carbon copy.