Dear Readers: Unlike previous reviews, the one in last week's issue included a "spoiler" that gave away the film's ending
without a warning. I am very sorry for this inconvenience.

Aloha! (I always wanted to say this. It sounds cool.) She's back... To be honest, I've seen her more beautiful before. For instance, she was fascinating in "Sweet November" and "Italian Job." This time, she was too pale to impress the audience with her looks, even though some critics have made comments like: "She is back with all her beauty." In my opinion, she is just back:-D Well, I'm talking about Charlize Theron.

I recently saw "Head in the Clouds," directed by John Duigan. Charlize Theron, Penélope Cruz and Stuart Townsend perform the leading roles in the movie. It's a wartime romance from a bird's-eye point of view. Charlize plays Gilda, a Cambridge University student known on campus for the scandals she has been involved in. Then we have Stuart Townsend as Guy, who is also a student at Cambridge. Accidentally, their lives cross, and they step into a complicated relationship that unfolds as the movie progresses. Next, Penélope Cruz appears in the film in the role of Mia, a nurse. During the opening section of the movie, the characters come together to form a happy threesome. However, geopolitical events (the Spanish Civil War and World War II) begin to affect them. Circumstances cause Mia and Guy to leave Gilda, forcing her to struggle against loneliness in the absence of her friends. This is especially true because these three are more than friends. They are lovers. Again, Charlize Theron is one step ahead with her performance. Her self-confident style of acting matches the personality of the character she portrays. Besides, she seems to be the one whose head is in the clouds. She is the one who is happy to be involved in a relationship with Mia and Guy and indifferent to the existing war. As for the others, Mia adds an exotic energy to the movie as Gilda's lesbian lover, and Guy is the hopeless romantic caught between two women.

Well, when I saw this movie, I noticed that it resembled two earlier movies, "Sweet November" and "The Dreamers." The way Theron directs the love between individuals is similar to her role in "Sweet November," where she was the one who made Keanu Reeves fall in love with her. As in "Sweet November," Theron is once again a woman living for the moment. On the other hand, the unity presented in the movie resembles the unity among the three leading characters in "The Dreamers." In addition, there was a similar war issue used for almost the same reason in "The Dreamers." Since this story is something we're familiar with, the director could have done more than a straight editing job. What I mean is that this story could have been adapted to the silver screen in a better way. The first half of the movie is composed of excessive sex content, while the second half is about the war and its consequences for the characters. Thus, there is a significant u-turn. If we think of the movie as a picture, the first half has a background formed of vivid colors, whereas in the second half the colors turn to gray and things get lost in the foggy atmosphere. If the war issues were presented equally in both halves, then the core ideas would be better defined. But still, I believe that this movie is a good one to spend your time and money on.

Take good care and stay cool. Aloha!

Rating:
Story: 0.5 / Directing: 0.5 / Editing: 0.5 /Acting: 1 / Visuals: 0.5

Atilla Karakurum (IE/IV)