the fresh films reviews

S I N C E   1 9 9 7










 

Stormy Monday (1988)

Director:
Mike Figgis
COUNTRY
United Kingdom
GENRE
Drama/Crime
NORWEGIAN TITLE
-
RUNNING TIME
93 minutes
Producer:
Nigel Stafford-Clark
Screenwriter:
Mike Figgis


Cast includes:

CHARACTER ACTOR/ACTRESS RATING
Kate Melanie Griffith ½
Cosmo Tommy Lee Jones
Finney Sting
Brendan Sean Bean
Tony James Cosmo
Mayor Alison Steadman

 

Review

The story is fairly run-of-the-mill and very 1980s in essence, complete with a large-scale corporate villain and a romance as cliched and naive as the come. But when Stormy Monday still works as well as it does, it's because of first-time director Mike Figgis (later of the award-winning Leaving Las Vegas) and his canny, compelling visual style and eclectic use of music. His scenes come and go as if in a slumbering dream, and it's all soft and soothing – like a nice hot bath after coming in from the cold. Now, the characters are drawn up with large, crude crayons and there's not much to learn or ponder over, but since Figgis clearly doesn't seem to mind this, I was almost tempted into not doing so either. Mediocre acting from all three principal leads (with Sting as the refreshing exception) does little to improve the dramatic effect.

Copyright © 8.10.2012 Fredrik Gunerius Fevang

[BACK TO INDEX]

[HAVE YOUR SAY]