Review of Cassandra's Dream (2007) by Cecilia C — 13 Mar 2009

This movie is no Match Point but I found it to be a good thriller that uses family loyalty as the catalyst for a series of wrongdoings. Like Match Point it is a drama, without any hint of Allen's usual comic banter.

..also no hint of Allen himself among the cast (also reminiscent of Match Point). Cassandra's Dream is about two brothers...both with different goals and different lifestyles but who both could need some cash to make their lives better.

Enter a rich uncle with a nefarious proposition and the moral dilemma of the story begins. This reminded me a little of Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart story about a man who just cannot go on living with what he has done.

And like all good thrillers, this one leaves you hanging until the very end. Not Allen's best (watch Match Point for that -- can you tell already I liked that one?) -- Farrell and McGregor are not that believable as brothers and Farrell is too over-the-top with his emotions and McGregor is not convincing as a struggling Londoner -- but, overall, it's an entertaining, suspenseful thriller that will keep your nails bitten and your tush at the edge of the seat.