Review of The English Patient (1996) by Sari P — 25 Nov 2015

The Best Picture winner The English Patient is a very praised movie. And although I did enjoy it, I don't get all the hype or praise. should it have won best picture? that's not for me to decide, but I will say no. The basic plot revolves around Ralph Fiennes (deserving of an Oscar but didn't get one) as a soldier during world War two who was horribly disfigured and burned when his plane went down. he then recounts his story of forbidden love while being cared for by a nurse. All of the acting is solid, especially Fiennes, who is starting to become one of my favorite actors due to recent films I have seen, and he is amazing. Willem Dafoe is also praiseworthy in his role. Colin Firth was ok, but nothing special. Kristen Scott Thomas was also good and very attractive in this role. my main issues with the movie have to do with the story, I didn't quite understand why the portion of him being burned was in the film. if he was telling the story of his love affair to the nurse then it would be relevant. however I did enjoy Willem Dafoe's character in those portions of the film. another complaint I had was that I never believed that the two main charcters were in love. their lack of chemistry almost broke that whole section of the plot, but Fiennes acting saved it for me. I believed everything out of his mouth. he was phenomenal. the directing was also slightly choppy and scattered to me. making it not confusing, but slightly muddled. one complaint that I don't have that is quite popular is that The English Patient is boring. I disagree. I was compelled by the story because of the scale and many of the actors. overall I did enjoy The English Patient, I just found the story slightly bland and some of the elements didn't work for me. quite overrated but still enjoyable.

6.8/10.