Review of The Look of Love (2013) by Foxgrove — 04 Jul 2013
Given its subject this is a curiously flat bio-pic of porn king Paul Raymond which benefits from some strong performances but is encumbered by a screenplay that is far too sketchy. Steve Coogan creates a credible character in the lead and demonstrates some great impersonations of Sean Connery and Marlon Brando.
Tamsin Egerton as Fiona Richmond, Anna Friel as his first wife Jean and Imogen Poots as his daughter Debbie are also all very good. That their performances survive this unremarkable material is to their credit.
The film doesn't seem to be able to decide if it's playing the whole thing for comedy or not, despite its tragic conclusion. It ends up being a tedious mess which never satisfactorily brings together the sum of its parts.
One learns more about these characters at the end titles than is ever communicated through the preceding 100 minutes. A definite plus is the use of popular 60's and 70's hits on the soundtrack. A definite minus is David Wailliams' out of key supporting turn which would be more at home in one of his tv sitcoms.
This review of The Look of Love (2013) was written by Foxgrove on 04 Jul 2013.
The Look of Love has generally received mixed reviews.
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