Elegy
Samuel Goldwyn Company, The | Release Date: August 8, 2008
6.8
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 67 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
39
Mixed:
20
Negative:
8
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
10
MargaretG.Aug 11, 2008
Powerful. Beautiful. Intense.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
JohnC.Aug 2, 2008
Excellent Penelope Cruz! Amazing film by one of my favorite filmmakers: Isabel Coixet.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
BrianneApr 30, 2009
A stunning film,I cried throughout,the acting is superb and the story really is so lovely yet very deep and emotional.I'm really wanting to go and read the book now.This film deserves way more advertisement then it got.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
AlbertOct 11, 2008
Penelope Cruz and Patricia Clarkson, they are the best of this movie. But it isn't the best movie by Isabel Coixet.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
AnnM.Aug 10, 2008
A good movie. Cruz's performance is the best of it. Nice for romantic people.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
LarryW.Sep 2, 2008
What a beautifully acted, photographed, edited, intelligently movie. A little heavy, but if you are a grown up you can't miss it. The acting alone is spectacular.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
MaxLSep 9, 2008
Performances are what made the movie watchable. Storywise, it's old and well-travelled already. Patricia Clarkson should be mentioned along Cruz and Kingsley as giving the movie life. Otherwise, it's a real downer as it goes on.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
1
LimaV.Sep 9, 2008
One of the most gimmicky movies I have ever seen; a stroke, breast cancer, AND a son who hates his father. Love, marriage, sex: all themes explored like they have been for the past four decades in a way that reeked mold and lacked anything One of the most gimmicky movies I have ever seen; a stroke, breast cancer, AND a son who hates his father. Love, marriage, sex: all themes explored like they have been for the past four decades in a way that reeked mold and lacked anything truly alive. Besides, the constant piano music weeping in the background was quite irritating.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
DFieldsNov 9, 2009
For me, Ben Kingsley was not the best choice for this romantic lead. He seemed awkward, unsure of himself and even childish and immature at inappropriate times. Cruz was impressive, as was Clarkston, but I literally cringed at the love For me, Ben Kingsley was not the best choice for this romantic lead. He seemed awkward, unsure of himself and even childish and immature at inappropriate times. Cruz was impressive, as was Clarkston, but I literally cringed at the love scenes. Furthermore, the catalyst scene where David no-shows to Consuela's event did not ring true and did not seem authentic to me. I never felt that he truly loved her, but rather was obsessed with the idea of her. Having her die at the end was heavy-handed and contrived.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
0
MikeHSep 14, 2009
Boring waste of time. Overrated.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
ClaireM.Aug 9, 2008
Lovely film and terrific performances by Penelope Cruz and Ben Kingsley.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
MarcyS.Sep 20, 2008
This is an excellent movie...great acting, directing, producing, etc. We were shocked that we had not heard more about it before seeing it.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
NoelTJan 22, 2009
A beautiful reflection on life, love, mortality, relationships and yes, sex. At first I feared it was just another "Lolita" story (older man/ much younger girl) but I was so wrong. It is a story of passion, love, trust, honesty, fear, A beautiful reflection on life, love, mortality, relationships and yes, sex. At first I feared it was just another "Lolita" story (older man/ much younger girl) but I was so wrong. It is a story of passion, love, trust, honesty, fear, regret, loss and discovery. A movie for a mature viewer, maybe someone who has experienced some of the trials of living. Gimmicky movie? I think not!… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
MauriceDec 7, 2009
Brilliant performances and enough memorable quotes and moments to stimulate conversation long after viewing. This is not a popcorn movie, it's a red wine movie, for those who care for the latter on occasion.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
5
JayHMar 15, 2009
Very strong cast, everyone does a very good job. But I found the film slow and rather boring. I just never got into the film. The characters just weren't that appealing. The direction lacks spark.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
2
CharlesS.Mar 25, 2009
Turned it off. Pretentious.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
tdmacMay 9, 2009
Eh. I don't know. Lacked something for me. The love and lives of intellectuals. I never reached a point where I felt any real compassion for the characters. They all seemed like an IDEA of people to me, not real multidimensional Eh. I don't know. Lacked something for me. The love and lives of intellectuals. I never reached a point where I felt any real compassion for the characters. They all seemed like an IDEA of people to me, not real multidimensional characters. Not a terrible movie...just a bit mediocre.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
ThomasM.Dec 23, 2008
A great film about the most basic fear most of us carry deep within--the feeling that we are not worthy of love. Contains one of Sir Ben's greatest performances with stunning cineamatography. A sad, honest, and beautiful film.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
HeidiBAug 23, 2008
Loved this film. I rarely cry at movies but this one just hit me in a way that many don't. Penelope Cruz was fantastic.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
ElizabethKDec 5, 2009
What a sad and beautiful film set in pure simplicity. It's such an honest film. Excellent acting by both leads. Finally! A film not only worth seeing, but seeing again. It makes you think, cry, wonder, question who you are and your own What a sad and beautiful film set in pure simplicity. It's such an honest film. Excellent acting by both leads. Finally! A film not only worth seeing, but seeing again. It makes you think, cry, wonder, question who you are and your own life. Now I need to read the book!… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
5
LynMay 29, 2011
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'm fond of talky movies like this -- and of Ben Kingsley -- but was distracted by the contrast between his timeworn hedonist and Penelope Cruz's earnest young beauty. You look from his countenance to hers and you think . . . "Um . . . really???" Also disliked the corny developments of the denouement. While all the performances were excellent, I did love the supporting work of Dennis Hopper and Patricia Clarkson. The professor's relationships with those characters actually were more interesting than his obsession with the student with the great face and bod.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
All this user's reviews
2
lancekozJun 18, 2015
What a waste of an interesting cast! Wooden dialog, no credibility to their relationship, hokey TV style lighting. Really embarassingly bad script where the character's past and issues are laid out in contrived statements that don't soundWhat a waste of an interesting cast! Wooden dialog, no credibility to their relationship, hokey TV style lighting. Really embarassingly bad script where the character's past and issues are laid out in contrived statements that don't sound like dialog at all. Poor Penelope... you could see she barely wanted to be in the same room with the Kingsley character, much less be in sex scenes with him.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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7
smiyamotDec 26, 2015
An interesting character study of a May December romance. And what does his best friend advise? And what does his estranged son want to talk to him about? There's a lot more going on around these two lovers and that makes the movie enjoyable.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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9
2morovianDec 30, 2018
It's hard not to like a film with Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz in it. Peering into the troubled lives of New York intellectuals and the petty problems they create for themselves can be a little trying, along with all the narcissism they canIt's hard not to like a film with Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz in it. Peering into the troubled lives of New York intellectuals and the petty problems they create for themselves can be a little trying, along with all the narcissism they can afford to support, but this film actually grabbed me on a deeper level than I anticipated. Kingsley is such a master of demonstrating complex individuals in all of their dimensions with such precision, authenticity and timing. I loved, hated and had great compassion for the character he was portraying because of his ability to draw me in on such an intimate level...as if I was in the film with him. Cruz, Cruz' breasts, Hopper and Clarkson were every bit as compelling and masterful in their deliveries, so the experience of this film was quite rich at every juncture. Then you realize that the film itself is eerily similar to Kingsley's real life drama and you wonder if he was chosen for the role because of this. This adds a peculiar, haunting twist (if you happen to know about him)...the success, the narcissism, the insecurity, the serial tempestuous relationships and marriages with women half his age. Surely, he knows this as well?… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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