Review of A Good Year (2006) by Chads. — 02 Dec 2006
What happened to Max? As a child(Freddy Highmore, his crying in "Finding Neverland" still paying dividends), "A Good Year" doesn't do enough to lay down the groundwork for the greedy individual we see in the form of Russell Crowe.
Cheating in chess and throwing a temper tantrum after a lost tennis match doesn't quite do it. He's anything but a bad seed. "A Good Year" is missing that crucial scene in which we see the makings of a barracuda.
Because "Under the Sideways Sun", laidback as it is, has the annoying mainstream agenda that the protagonist must be likable, Max Skinner is much too nice(more smarm instead of charm, please) for someone who cuts throats and takes no prisoners for a living His character arc is nearly non-existent since he's charming and debonair before his French awakening.
Like real life, Crowe should berate, or punch someone out during the film's section when Max believes that "winning is not everything, it's the only thing." But still, "A Good Year" works.
The vineyards are predictably picturesque; the woman of his dreams...stunning, and the supporting characters provide the requisite local color. It's like shooting fish in the barrel, and the director doesn't miss.
At the end of "A Good Year", you want Max's life.
This review of A Good Year (2006) was written by Chads. on 02 Dec 2006.
A Good Year has generally received positive reviews.
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