Loveless

(spoiler free)

‘Loveless’ is one of the five nominees for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar at the 90th Academy Awards. It’s received widespread critical acclaim which can be seen even by quickly glancing at it’s five star plastered poster. The film tells the story of a divorced couple who must put their differences aside in order to find their child who has gone missing after overhearing the couple arguing.

The film is unapologetically slow-moving and it’s absent of any real narrative. As a result it’s painfully dull and one of the most excruciatingly boring cinematic experiences of recent years. Let me elaborate. The warning signs were there from the start as the film opens with a sequence of lingering shots of scenery and buildings, which yes, would be revisited several times throughout the film but did not require such a focus initially. Subsequently, the film takes an age to actually feel like it’s going anywhere. When it finally does kick into gear the narrative chooses to focus on the divorced couple and seems set on making them two of the most detestable characters audiences will have seen in a drama like this. The film proceeds to put the spotlight on these characters and in doing so gives the audience next to no reason to give a damn about anything happening on screen.

Furthermore, the amount of mundane scenes included here that in no way further the narrative is staggering. Similarly there were countless scenes which seemingly just refused to end, supplying audiences with pointless information which isn’t nessecary at all. This isn’t your standard missing person drama, it feels like a completely by the numbers case file has been lifted from a Russian police station to be used as the screenplay with no thought given to creating any type of cinematic drama or storytelling. By the time the credits finally begin to appear on screen there is no reward for the audience for sticking with the film and it leaves you feeling cheated of anything even slightly resembling entertainment. I’m clearly missing something that the masses of other critics didn’t. There’s constant news and radio reports regarding the political climate being broadcast in the background of many scenes in the film so maybe there’s a grander story being told here. However, the film fails to be in anyway engaging enough for any interest to be conjured up to even begin to interpret any deeper or more profound messages present.

The only redeeming features about ‘Loveless’ are the performances and the impressive cinematography. However, neither are good enough to warrant a recommendation of the film as any kind of positive viewing experience for audiences. How in the hell this has been nominated for an Oscar I doubt I’ll ever understand. I’m cautious to completely write it off due to it’s otherwise mainly positive reception but I’m confident that many films fans like myself would share a similar experience to mine. Loveless? More like lifeless. 

Written by Hamish Calvert

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Rating – 1/10

Question: What is your favourite Oscar winner of the Foreign Film award?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)

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