It's All About Love Movie Review:


Not an easy film to describe, this English-language thriller by Danish filmmaker Vinterberg (Festen) is both involving and deeply bizarre, definitely for fans of films off the beaten path. John (Phoenix) thinks he's going to have only 20 minutes on a stopover in New York City. While there, he wants his wife Elena (Danes) to finally sign their divorce papers, but Elena has other plans, and her minder (Strong) drags him out of the airport to a "family" gathering of her manager (Armstrong), assistant (Martindale), brother (Henshall) and various hangers on. She's obviously stalling for some reason, and as John's stay lengthens to two days, then four, then a week, he discovers that a conspiracy is afoot. Elena is a world-class ice skater who wants to retire ... but the "family" has other plans.

First of all, this is all set in the near future (2021), when a strange heart illness has gripped New York, leaving bodies lying in doorways, roadsides and so on. And there's an eerie multicultural feel to this world in which national boundaries seem to have slipped a bit. The cast is excellent, playing the characters with a heightened authenticity reminiscent of classic 1950s thrillers. And Vinterburg adds menace with cinematography, editing and direction that all hint at much more than we or the characters know. It has a crisp, steely look--full of murkiness and mystery, sudden shadows on faces and soaring airborne photography (John's brother, played by Penn, lives on airplanes). So far so good, but the film is also filled with extremely odd quirks, such as news reports of flying Ugandans and freakish weather patterns that hint a new ice age is about to begin ... perhaps before the final credits role! A gonzo plot twist and a surreal ice ballet are Vinterberg's next surprises, followed by a grand finale that's both maddeningly elusive and deeply emotional. Sure there's a nice parallel in the way the world's chaos is reflected in people's hearts. And yes, it's all about love. So why did the lack of a coherent resolution bother me so much?

Rich Cline

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