Review of Far Harbor (1996) by Doctor S — 21 Mar 2011

Far Harbor is a little-seen Jennifer Connelly indie movie from 1996. Hell that's the only reason I watched it. It's very slow and talky, occasionally pretentious, and populated by people you wouldn't want to be at a dinner party with.

However there are a few thoughtful moments, capped by Connelly delivering a mesmerizing 6:30 monologue about a fateful day that changed her life. From the first couple sentences, you know what the outcome of her story will be, but you still have to sit there uncomfortably just like the rest of the cast does and listen to her softly describe every detail. You can tell she has replayed that day a thousand times over in her mind, and now reflects upon it with acceptance traced with an almost whimsical sadness. Quite extraordinary. It's the kind of speech that could've gotten her a Supporting Actress nomination long before A Beautiful Mind if it had been in a much better movie. I would say for Connelly fans it's worth watching just for that scene.