The film might have worked if Fred’s cluelessness were meant to be ironic, and if there were a sense of real give and take between the characters (as there was in the similarly themed Two Girls and a Guy), but Some Velvet Morning is a rigged game—another La Bute monologue disguised as a dialogue. It helps that LaBute has actors as formidable as Tucci and Eve. Fred (Stanley Tucci) arrives at the doorstep of his beautiful young mistress Velvet (Alice Eve) after four years apart, claiming to have finally left his wife. Sydney Morning Herald August 4, 2014 The look of Some Velvet Morning remains clean and flat, the decor [is] mostly hotel-room neutral. The look of Some Velvet Morning remains clean and flat, the decor [is] mostly hotel-room neutral. We can say this: It represents a return to the kind of writing and filmmaking with which Neil LaBute made his name. Some Velvet Morning is at best a missed opportunity and mercifully, a short one. You'll want to watch the film again immediately, and it will rattle around in your head for hours. (She’s previously stood out in supporting parts in films including "Starter for 10" and "Star Trek Into Darkness."). More importantly, it’s a phenomenal performance piece, with LaBute capturing the incredible gifts of two masters of pretense. Some Velvet Morning review: Stanley Tucci lacks sexual menace This film, like the song from which it takes its name, involves a man, a woman, and a certain amount of erotic ambiguity. And eventually getting physical with each other. But that description makes "Some Velvet Morning" seem uptight, and it’s anything but that. Really. This dark and dismal psychological exercise features two winning performances in a film that warrants excited discussion after its closing frames. Movie review: ‘Some Velvet Morning’ — 2 stars. Neil LaBute’s 1997 debut film In … Visions of Friendship: Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin on The Climb, The Lynchian Aspirations of Losing Alice Underwhelm Rather Than Intrigue, CW Reboots Walker but Forgets to Give Him a Personality, Something as Extraordinary as Birth Itself: Kornél Mundruczó and Kata Wéber on Pieces of a Woman. LaBute lets his characters reveal themselves in drips and drabs as they get reacquainted and rehash what went wrong in their relationship. As they fumble to form a civilized conversation, they misread each other's signals and tell bad jokes that fall flat. It features two actors in an enclosed setting—a tastefully decorated New York brownstone—doing nothing but talking in real time over the course of 82 minutes. At the City Cinemas Village East, Second Avenue near 12th Street. 0. comments. I think my jaw is still on the floor somewhere. LaBute's latest, Some Velvet Morning, was written for the screen, but it might as well be a theatrical exercise. Stanley Tucci and Alice Eve in ‘Some Velvet Morning’ The ultimate news source for music, celebrity, entertainment, movies, and current events on the web. Posted on December 12, 2013. Not rated (language, violence, sex). Note: The movie review posted on this page reflects a personal opinion of one user. LaBute is back to being his black-hearted self once more. 1 out of 5 stars. Fred says he's finally left his wife of 24 years for Eve's Velvet (a name we learn is not really hers, and one she detests), a much younger Brit with whom he’d had an affair. Some Velvet Morning is like a 90 minute ticking time-bomb that’s ready to explode at any moment, and in the end it does detonate. Get the freshest reviews, news, and more delivered right to your inbox! A sad example of what sometimes happens when a writer of gripping stage plays controls his own independent movie to his own selfish, labored self-satisfaction. At his most brutish, he’s misogynistic and crassly forward in his sexual remarks (shocking coming from a LaBute film, right?). And flirting. Running time: 83 minutes. "Some Velvet Morning" is not based on one of his stage productions, as some of his best-known movies have been, but rather feels like a play on film. Some Velvet Morning plays perfectly to the sexual mystique that Hazlewood and Sinatra established. In all his character's forms, Tucci remains vibrant and unpredictable—intimidating, even, despite his slight stature. The absolute ending of "Some Velvet Morning" is a stunner, one that is sure to irk and awe viewers in equal measure (I’m in the latter camp). LaBute wisely lets a lot of individual moments in Some Velvet Morning play out in long takes, giving the actors the time and space to build the scene. It first appeared on Sinatra's album Movin' with Nancy, the soundtrack to her 1967 television special of the same name, which also featured a performance of the song. Anyone game to watch two effortlessly volatile and vulnerable performers trade barbs for 83 minutes ought to give this due consideration. LaBute lulls us with a long establishing shot during the opening titles: a slightly blurry overhead look at Eve lounging on a couch in a bright red dress, listening to music on her headphones. Velvet, meanwhile, is the cool and confident icy blonde in the great Hitchcockian tradition. Some Velvet Morning, released in December of 2013, has been described as one the most “fucked-up mainstream movie[s] of the year.” It was written and directed by Neil LaBute and stars Alice Eve and Stanley Tucci. She's also on Twitter @christylemire and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/christy.lemire2. They play beautifully off each other, even as (or perhaps especially when) they're hurling ugly sentiments back and forth. The major visual idea is to have Eve's red dress and lipstick stand out against a monochromatic backdrop: effective in itself, but not enough. Though LaBute wrote this for the screen, I mistakenly decided that it must have originated onstage... because the oblique, heavily freighted dialogue seems too elegant and artful for a medium dominated by hacks. Aside from the awkwardness of their first few moments together, Fred and Velvet endure an emotional roller coaster and they drag us along for the ride. Christy Lemire is a co-host of the YouTube film review show "What the Flick?!" But when she rejects his attempts to rekindle their romance, his persistence evolves into obsession, and a dark history between the former lovers comes into focus. This cliché ridden film is a staggering disappointment: a morally offensive, done-on-the-cheap movie with a lifeless single location. By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy Sidney Poitier’s 7 Most Memorable Performances, All Harry Potter Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer. Some Velvet Morning (470) IMDb 5.8 1h 23min 2013 Stanley Tucci stars as a man who surprises his former mistress (Alice Eve, STAR TREK INTO DARKESS), claiming to have left his wife. I couldn't have been caught more off-guard. Eventually, pent-up resentments bubble to the surface. He never disappoints. Movie Review | ‘Some Velvet Morning’ LCJ Published 12:12 a.m. The twist at the end will be a slap in the face to some and will undoubtedly spawn debates. One revelation leads to another, as well as the expected sexual confrontation, but then there's a moment of gentility, of grown-up understanding, and even, well, tenderness of a weird order. Highly intriguing and verbally thrilling. Christy reviewed films for The Associated Press for over 14 years. some of his best-known movies have been, but rather feels like a play on film. I came away from this malevolent exercise with the sense that these two add up to little more than the sum of their awfulness. Fine acting aside, this is a story that should have remained untold. This smallest of films marks a welcome return to the world of interpersonal miniature for the writer-director. Read full review We are not responsible for its content. Lee was aware was of this and later said: “We were accused of doing a lot more than just singing, so we decided well, hell, we might as well play it up.” The only reason why I gave this movie a chance was because of Stanley Tucci, who usually makes good movies, and after seeing this film, … Her classic good looks and pleasant demeanor suggest a softness to her femininity, but in time she proves she's both quick-witted and quick-tempered. ET Dec. 26, 2013 Alice Eve and Stanley Tucci in a scene from the film “Some Velvet Morning.” NEW YORK DAILY NEWS | Dec 12, 2013 at 1:23 PM . He can be affectionate as well as passive-aggressive. With Some Velvet Morning, LaBute returns to the provocative style that made his name. Sometimes he’s like a scolding father figure, while at other times he's like a jilted teenager. These are people who are in love with language; they choose their words carefully for maximum effect and even sprout off into side conversations about the specifics of certain phrasing. The trouble with "Some Velvet Morning" is that it’s impossible to discuss why it's so powerful without giving away much about the very revelations and plot twists that help make it so. Copyright © Fandango. Before too long, a dark history between the two has come into focus. 1 out of 5 stars. Fred and Velvet’s battle builds to a painful crescendo, but it’s not the last word on their relationship. All rights reserved. crucial, and Stanley Tucci and Alice Eve more than rise to the formidable challenge. Now, with “Some Velvet Morning,” we have the cynical, chauvinist, male character back as the lead. LaBute has always been fond of the last-second rug-pull that re-contextualizes everything, but Some Velvet Morning’s climactic revelation is distinct from those of his previous films in a specific, intriguing way, one that trades brutality for something more poignant. LaBute may not be saying anything novel about constricting gender roles and the cynical ways in which we sell ourselves out, but he is saying it in his signature, provocative style. Now they can finally be together, he insists happily—and whether Velvet actually wants that, or ever wanted that, is at the heart of the debate over the rest of the film. Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer. Movie reviews: 'Some Velvet Morning,' 'The Crash Reel' By Joe Neumaier. If only the journey to that destination were a bit more flavorful. When the movie begins, these two characters are blank slates that the … Desire, love? Please enter your email address and we will email you a new password. This is by design. If not longer. Forgot your password? Despite the lack of action involved with two people having one long conversation, the film is somehow completely hypnotic. Some Velvet Morning: Movie review. And bickering. That’s good news for fans of his earlier work, like “In the Company of Men” and "The Shape of Things," and bad news for people who like their films filled with hope and redemption. But when she rejects his attempts to rekindle their romance, his persistence evolves into obsession — and a … Please … Read her answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here. She can be brutal as she brandishes hidden secrets like weapons. You can find Christy's writing at ChristyLemire.com. Share Tweet Submit Pin. Some final contextual cues hint that we shouldn't be so sure and suggest that Labute has something to say about ends justifying means. Wow. Some Velvet Morning is the type of film which makes you yell at the screen and get frustrated to the point you want to jump into the movie and do something. Stanley Tucci and Alice Eve waste their time and ours in a dreadful, boring two-hander about a man who leaves his wife for his much younger mistress. and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango. Fred alternates between being needy and condescending. Review: What a strange but we'll made movie which is based around a conversation between 2 people, about there relationship. Never mind that Fred and Velvet haven't been romantically involved for about four years, and that things ended badly. Don't have an account? Movie review Some Velvet Morning. Some might view the end as a cruel prank at the expense of moviegoers while others might consider it a cop-out, but perhaps the point of it all is that we should not rush to judgment when it comes to Mr. LaBute's theater of cruelty. It's all transactional. By Robert Levin. 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