Absolutely Brilliant!

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

"… If I am estranged from myself, I am likewise a stranger to others." - Brennan ManningWhile watching this female-centered chapter of the trilogy, one could find out in a short-while our protagonists might be going around in circles and not reaching a fair ground of conclusion. Eleanor(Jessica Chastain) and her estranged husband, Connor(James McAvoy), might still be in love but given their history of tragedy, she avoided meeting halfway or even less to make it work again about them. Not because that Eleanor was scared or abruptly commitment- phobic, but profoundly pained by her past of which he was an integral part, thus, she wanted to leave all of it back. At the same time, Conor tried hard only to give-up as well, and unwillingly accepting their estrangement. Around here, this 'drama-romance' seemed to be moving towards a 'tragedy'; however, around the conclusion the protagonists do meet- up and talk their hearts out, and amidst their sorrow, understand to move on and away. However, in the aftermath their future-association was left on the viewer's discretion.In the film, 'escapism' was delicately placed and utilised like a furbished backdrop to the plot, however, in a non-negative connotation; such as - Eleanor adored her nephew, and knew that it won't give her solace for long and definitely not suffice for her child. At the same time, we notice through her dialogues that her 'part-broken, part-recovering' viewpoints towards her environment and everyone around her, as she seemed so hopeless in shedding her pain, making her more isolated from any compassion. Similarly, she found mirrors too pinching and bothersome; though she ended up discovering one (more of her own 'reflection') in her anthropology professor (Viola Davis), who also "stayed hard" towards life, much like her. They talk about their short-comings and form a likely companionship, while jibing together at their likes and dislikes making it seem like a 'hermetically sealed, surreal experience' between them. They mostly never reached any solid conclusions, but they always found each other. It is a visual treat to watch Chastain and Davis deliver their scenes together, with characteristically mouthing same set of lines time-after-time. "The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Her" is way better delivered than the "Them" chapter in all aspects – especially in its writing (Ned Benson) and editing (Kristina Bonet, "Carlito's Way"). With the exceptions of supportive vignettes, the drama seems genuine on many aspects and also, tends to generate a fair deal of empathy towards the female-protagonist and also, some displeasure.Verdict – Watchable, mainly because of a near-perfect on-screen chemistry between James McAvoy and Jessica Chastain.Rating – 7/10

Seems like you may have to bring a lot of your own experience to this one to make it meaningful. I couldn't help get the feeling that w/d Ben Nelson was trying to revive our flagging interest by withholding vital information and by keeping Jessica C—albeit a brittle, clinically depressed JC—on screen as much as possible. Even the 30″ encounter with Bill Hader and Viola Davis's whacky psych lecture couldn't keep me from fidgeting with the Stop button. I enjoyed the Downtown locations and some of the interactions between Eleanor and her sister (nicely played by Jess Weixler), but after a couple of especially static, underwritten scenes we decided we'd had enough...

The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby…Her (2013)With a title that is suspiciously catchy (as in the Beatles song) I expected a quirky comedy, or a weak independent flick. Instead I found a seriously good, thoughtful, straight ahead movie about a young woman facing a huge crisis in her life. Around her is a family that seems more or less normal, and friends who seem supportive in the ways we all expect. And it turns out this is one of three probing movies in a triptych about this difficult normality.It is the cracks in our normal world this movie tries to explore. Like how the small things in family and friends can rub the wrong way, or how little flaws in a person's make-up can lead to small disasters, which accumulate. It's all beautifully told, with subtle acting all around including a minor but gentle presence as the woman's father by William Hurt and an odd but eventually important role as the woman's professor by Viola Davis.It is Jessica Chastain, for sure, who makes this movie soar. She's subtle enough, underacting as needed, and physical enough, moving through the scenes with snap (including the startling first scene), she keeps the movie especially alive. In some unexpected way it might be compared to the more amazing Frances Ha, though there must be better examples of following a young woman through her struggles for purpose and place in an ordinary, contemporary world. On difference is certainly that the title Character (Eleanor) has suffered a huge disaster and doesn't quite show it. She seems out of sorts, but not on the edge of ruin. Chastain is somehow remarkable, anyway, though, playing her part with feeling but not overplaying it. It's the writing and direction that needed a little tilting into reality.If you are wondering about the other two movies, read on: the idea is not exactly new, but still adds depth. The Him and Her movies show a series of events from two different points of view, which of course is how life works. This version (Her) is from the woman's point of view, and is maybe the best for me because I really like Chastain. Beware of the third movie, however—which has the suffix: Them. This is a mash of the first two, a shortened single version that apparently lacks the potentially probing aspects of the two halves, which are sometimes released together as a marathon version that is not the combined Them.I suggest giving this one an honest try. It's really better than some of the complaints if taken just as it stands, alone. Whether you should then see the Him version then depends on you.

It's always great when festival films can hold onto that excitement even over a year from their premiere. Perhaps that magic comes from the intrigue in The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby's conceit. The content of the film is nothing new, just approached in a special way. A couple drift apart due to an unspeakable tragedy and try to make sense of the world. Sprinkled with introspective insights and anchored by terrific performances, it's truly bolstered through its enigma. Now I decided to watch Her first, arguably the more acclaimed of the pair, at least for Jessica Chastain. Although the director states that the films can be watched in any order, the premiere started with Him and in hindsight perhaps it offers key context that I should've dived into first, but I quite prefer the way I watched it even though the latter suffered.Knowing that it has a counterpart film gives Her an enigma and the film is enchanting, benefiting from a sparing use of James McAvoy. This is the Chastain show and she's the best I've seen her so far. Sometimes it teeters on being quirky for the sake of quirkiness the way indie movies do, but its subversive way it acknowledges and rejects clichés rings too true and dig deep. Perhaps as a result it is quite clichéd, but the nuanced and heavy hearted texture of the film with the soft autumnal cinematography and use of music makes it a human experience. It's such a melodic, delicate, intimate, introspective, melancholic and ultimately heartbreaking look at the pain of moving on, emotionally and in Eleanor Rigby's case, physically as she finds herself compelled to drift from place to place hoping that she can start fresh but never does. It's very satisfying that the film met high expectations, at least this half of the experiment.8/10