The Painted Veil often feels like a typical period drama, but at other times it feels like something a bit more unique. Kitty (Naomi Watts) and Walter (Edward Norton) do not make your typical romantic couple either, and the way they fall in love is much different than you would expect. In other words, Kitty feels forced in to the marriage with Walter and does not feel connected to him in any way, until later.
The film is about the loveless marriage between the two, how they met, and how after realizing that Kitty is having an affair Walter desides to punish her. He takes her to a small village in China with a cholera epidemic. Walter is a doctor and is overwhelmed with the amount of work he has treating the many victims of the disease, and has the job of controlling it from spreading.
Watts and Norton are both superb in their roles, which are also characterized in three-dimensions. Also something unique to this genre, instead of stealing character outlines from past films. All of the other characters in the film are minor roles, but the acting is great all around, regardless.
Some of the story feels a bit forced, and is often quite predictable. I felt that I knew what was going to happen around every corner. That is usually what happens with such a simple story. It is well-told and well played out, but it is not anything remarkable. I did find it to be stronger than most romances, though.
The score is subtle and weaves in and out of the film perfectly, playing over moments without dialogue and becoming almost unnoticeable, but still there, in parts with a lot of talking. It is mostly simple piano themes, but they are pretty instead of irritating.
The pace of the film is often slow, but I did not feel the need for the film to move any faster than it did. At just over two hours, I think it is just the right length. Perhaps, though, some scenes, particulary towards the end could have been more drawn out and scenes toward the middle could be tightened up. Since we know how the middle will play out, I did not think we needed as much as we got.
The cinematography is breathtaking. What it lacks in large helicopter shots typical of the genre, it makes up for in photographing the Chinese countryside in a subtle and beautiful way.
7.5/10
The film is about the loveless marriage between the two, how they met, and how after realizing that Kitty is having an affair Walter desides to punish her. He takes her to a small village in China with a cholera epidemic. Walter is a doctor and is overwhelmed with the amount of work he has treating the many victims of the disease, and has the job of controlling it from spreading.
Watts and Norton are both superb in their roles, which are also characterized in three-dimensions. Also something unique to this genre, instead of stealing character outlines from past films. All of the other characters in the film are minor roles, but the acting is great all around, regardless.
Some of the story feels a bit forced, and is often quite predictable. I felt that I knew what was going to happen around every corner. That is usually what happens with such a simple story. It is well-told and well played out, but it is not anything remarkable. I did find it to be stronger than most romances, though.
The score is subtle and weaves in and out of the film perfectly, playing over moments without dialogue and becoming almost unnoticeable, but still there, in parts with a lot of talking. It is mostly simple piano themes, but they are pretty instead of irritating.
The pace of the film is often slow, but I did not feel the need for the film to move any faster than it did. At just over two hours, I think it is just the right length. Perhaps, though, some scenes, particulary towards the end could have been more drawn out and scenes toward the middle could be tightened up. Since we know how the middle will play out, I did not think we needed as much as we got.
The cinematography is breathtaking. What it lacks in large helicopter shots typical of the genre, it makes up for in photographing the Chinese countryside in a subtle and beautiful way.
7.5/10
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