''Remember Me'' Review by BVM News
“Remember Me” — that won’t be hard. This romantic tragedy has something of a sweet message buried deep underneath its cold exterior. This film leaves the viewer feeling both warm and haunted, even after having have left the theater.
The film begins with a strong act of urban violence at a subway station in 1991, where 11 year-old Ally Craig (Caitlyn Rund) witnesses her mother’s murder.
The rest of the movie is set in New York City a decade later, where the film’s protagonist, Tyler Hawkins (“Twilight’s” Robert Pattinson), lives. Tyler is a sour, rebellious young man (think Edward Cullen with a little less class) who is dealing his family’s strained relationship after his older brother’s suicide several years earlier. The viewer is led to believe this tragedy caused Tyler’s moodiness and his especially hateful attitude toward his estranged, lawyer father (Pierce Brosnan).
Fortunately, Tyler isn’t at odds with everyone in his family. He has a soft spot for his 11-year-old sister, Caroline (played by Ruby Jerins), a young misfit, but a talented artist. Tyler is known to go out of his way to lovingly protect his baby sister.
The now 21-year-old Ally (played by “Lost’s” Emilie de Ravin) is living with her police officer father (Chris Cooper) in New York as well. When Ally’s father arrests Tyler for talking back to a police officer, he begins dating her to get revenge on her dad. However, the pair end up falling in love, and their love is what helps them each heal from their own tragic pasts.
While the plot of this film is very typical, the ending certainly isn’t. It was worth paying $5 for the matinee showing just to hear the simultaneous gasps of the audience, as the movie’s plot-twist ending plays out during the last five minutes. An observant viewer will find clues to the end throughout movie.
Despite the film’s bad reviews from critics (it received a 28 percent on Rotten Tomatoes Tomato Meter at www.rottentomatoes.com) it proved to be very entertaining, and the movie surprisingly continued to stay interesting throughout its nearly two-hour runtime.
The film’s witty dialogue played a big role in contributing to its intrigue. At one point, 11 year-old Caroline tells her brother that their aunt isn’t allowed to drink at Christmas anymore, because last time she caused a “Yuletide homicide.” Snappy lines such as this appeared throughout the movie and received plenty of laughs from the audience.
The actors are the most impressive part of the movie, however. When given actual lines, (“Bella, I love you, but I’m dangerous for you,” doesn’t count) Pattinson’s acting shines. Viewers can see this guy has actual chops. Brosnan (famous for playing James Bond several years ago) plays a convincingly cold and even somewhat frightening father for Pattinson. However, the award for best actor in this film goes to Jerins for her role as the young Caroline. Jerins plays an incredibly sweet little girl, whose artistic gift is astounding. Jerins is also a convincing victim, as her character is tormented by bullies who don’t understand her talent. Her haunted face after a group of girls decide to completely cut off a section of her hair is enough to break anyone’s heart.
While actors like Pattinson are popular among the teen set, viewers should know this movie isn’t for the tween Twi-hards. This dark movie is rich with realistic violence (unlike the fantasy, stylized violence found in “Twilight”) and often proves to be quite graphic. The film arouses several touchy subjects including suicide, bullying, and parental neglect.
While this film features harsh violence and sensitive subjects, its overall message showing importance of forgiveness is apparent throughout. The movie also stresses the importance of living each day to the fullest, as Tyler states, “Gandhi said that whatever you do in life will be insignificant, but it’s very important that you do it. I tend to disagree with the first part.”
The film begins with a strong act of urban violence at a subway station in 1991, where 11 year-old Ally Craig (Caitlyn Rund) witnesses her mother’s murder.
The rest of the movie is set in New York City a decade later, where the film’s protagonist, Tyler Hawkins (“Twilight’s” Robert Pattinson), lives. Tyler is a sour, rebellious young man (think Edward Cullen with a little less class) who is dealing his family’s strained relationship after his older brother’s suicide several years earlier. The viewer is led to believe this tragedy caused Tyler’s moodiness and his especially hateful attitude toward his estranged, lawyer father (Pierce Brosnan).
Fortunately, Tyler isn’t at odds with everyone in his family. He has a soft spot for his 11-year-old sister, Caroline (played by Ruby Jerins), a young misfit, but a talented artist. Tyler is known to go out of his way to lovingly protect his baby sister.
The now 21-year-old Ally (played by “Lost’s” Emilie de Ravin) is living with her police officer father (Chris Cooper) in New York as well. When Ally’s father arrests Tyler for talking back to a police officer, he begins dating her to get revenge on her dad. However, the pair end up falling in love, and their love is what helps them each heal from their own tragic pasts.
While the plot of this film is very typical, the ending certainly isn’t. It was worth paying $5 for the matinee showing just to hear the simultaneous gasps of the audience, as the movie’s plot-twist ending plays out during the last five minutes. An observant viewer will find clues to the end throughout movie.
Despite the film’s bad reviews from critics (it received a 28 percent on Rotten Tomatoes Tomato Meter at www.rottentomatoes.com) it proved to be very entertaining, and the movie surprisingly continued to stay interesting throughout its nearly two-hour runtime.
The film’s witty dialogue played a big role in contributing to its intrigue. At one point, 11 year-old Caroline tells her brother that their aunt isn’t allowed to drink at Christmas anymore, because last time she caused a “Yuletide homicide.” Snappy lines such as this appeared throughout the movie and received plenty of laughs from the audience.
The actors are the most impressive part of the movie, however. When given actual lines, (“Bella, I love you, but I’m dangerous for you,” doesn’t count) Pattinson’s acting shines. Viewers can see this guy has actual chops. Brosnan (famous for playing James Bond several years ago) plays a convincingly cold and even somewhat frightening father for Pattinson. However, the award for best actor in this film goes to Jerins for her role as the young Caroline. Jerins plays an incredibly sweet little girl, whose artistic gift is astounding. Jerins is also a convincing victim, as her character is tormented by bullies who don’t understand her talent. Her haunted face after a group of girls decide to completely cut off a section of her hair is enough to break anyone’s heart.
While actors like Pattinson are popular among the teen set, viewers should know this movie isn’t for the tween Twi-hards. This dark movie is rich with realistic violence (unlike the fantasy, stylized violence found in “Twilight”) and often proves to be quite graphic. The film arouses several touchy subjects including suicide, bullying, and parental neglect.
While this film features harsh violence and sensitive subjects, its overall message showing importance of forgiveness is apparent throughout. The movie also stresses the importance of living each day to the fullest, as Tyler states, “Gandhi said that whatever you do in life will be insignificant, but it’s very important that you do it. I tend to disagree with the first part.”
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