The Seagull

Name: The Seagull
Genre: Drama
Released: May 11, 2018
Duration: 98 min
Rating: 58
Cast: Annette Bening, Billy Howle, Brian Dennehy, Corey Stoll, Elisabeth Moss

2018

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Mixed or average reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 23 Ratings

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5.9

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5.9	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 23 Ratings

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The Seagull

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Movie Details & Credits

Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: May 11, 2018 | PG-13

Starring: Annette Bening, Billy Howle, Brian Dennehy, Corey Stoll, Elisabeth Moss, Glenn Fleshler, Jon Tenney, Mare Winningham, Michael Zegen, Saoirse Ronan

Summary: An aging actress named Irina Arkadina pays summer visits to her brother Pjotr Nikolayevich Sorin and her son Konstantin on a country estate. On one occasion, she brings Trigorin, a successful novelist, with her. Nina, a free and innocent girl on a neighboring estate, falls in love with Boris Trigorin. As Trigorin lightly consumes andAn aging actress named Irina Arkadina pays summer visits to her brother Pjotr Nikolayevich Sorin and her son Konstantin on a country estate. On one occasion, she brings Trigorin, a successful novelist, with her. Nina, a free and innocent girl on a neighboring estate, falls in love with Boris Trigorin. As Trigorin lightly consumes and rejects Nina, so the actress all her life has consumed and rejected her son, who loves Nina. The victims are destroyed while the sophisticates continue on their way.… Expand

Director: Michael Mayer

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 98 min

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Critic Reviews

Dana Schwartz

May 10, 2018

The Seagull is lush and dreamlike, leaving the drawing room for lake, field, and forest. Though we lose some of Chekhov’s claustrophobic talkiness, the dense poetry of his language, Mayer fully captures Chekhov’s sharp humor. Read full review

David Edelstein

Apr 27, 2018

Despite a few scenes that are too on the nose, The Seagull... turns out to be very fine. Above all, it’s a platform for a handful of definitive performances. Read full review

Dan Callahan

May 10, 2018

The most impressive thing about this film of The Seagull is that every role has been ideally cast. Read full review

Alan Scherstuhl

May 10, 2018

Onstage, we get to choose which face to regard, to watch each hard truth or unexamined lie crash against each character’s carefully maintained set of illusions. Here, we mostly see one face at a time. Those faces are grand enough that this Seagull still has much to recommend. Read full review

The Observer (UK) Wendy Ide

Sep 9, 2018

The result is entertaining enough, particularly when Annette Bening whirls through a scene. Read full review

Ty Burr

May 23, 2018

The film casts Annette Bening as the vain, aging stage actress Irina Arkadina, Saoirse Ronan as the naive country beauty Nina, and Elisabeth Moss as bitter Masha, dressed in black “in mourning for my life.” Those are three excellent reasons to see the movie, and the filmmaking fights them almost every step of the way. Read full review

Calvin Wilson

May 31, 2018

One has to wonder why the film was even made if it had to be so disastrously compromised. Chekhov would be appalled. Read full review

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User Reviews

TVJerry

Jul 2, 2018

I've never been a big fan of Chekhov, but this film adaptation (somewhat trimmed) does an nice job of making him enjoyable. It's set in the 1800s Russian countryside, where a famous actress comes to visit her brother. The cast (headlined by Annette Bening, who's deliciously self-involved andI've never been a big fan of Chekhov, but this film adaptation (somewhat trimmed) does an nice job of making him enjoyable. It's set in the 1800s Russian countryside, where a famous actress comes to visit her brother. The cast (headlined by Annette Bening, who's deliciously self-involved and imperious) is full of fine actors doing wonderful work. Everyone relishes their characters' exquisite misery and romantic frustrations. Interestingly, Saoirse Ronan and Billy Howle were just paired up in "On Chesil Beach." A few glimpses of humor manage to shine thru the drama. Even with the dialogue trimmed from the play, there are some scenes that move slowly. Still, the overall style and first-rate performances create a nice little screen version of the classic.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

AugustKeller

Jun 4, 2018

Drama abounds as The Seagull navigates a journey of romantic entanglement. Set in late nineteenth century Russia, this film follows a cast full of characters experiencing unrequited love. Exquisitely produced and scored, The Seagull does all it can to surround viewers with its elegant world.Drama abounds as The Seagull navigates a journey of romantic entanglement. Set in late nineteenth century Russia, this film follows a cast full of characters experiencing unrequited love. Exquisitely produced and scored, The Seagull does all it can to surround viewers with its elegant world. Unfortunately, the many proficiencies of this movie are limited by a key weakness: emotional connection.

Ultimately, it is difficult to truly care about the characters in The Seagull because they aren’t fully likable, developed or interesting. Through monotone writing, acting & direction, their bonds to the audience are superficial. Perhaps we are supposed to find some characters unrelatable but, when the entire crux is the drama between them, it leaves me wondering why I should care about the film as a whole. The Seagull is undoubtedly a well made film that displays the perils of romance but also lacks the pop to be universally memorable.

Writing: 6/10
Direction: 6/10
Cinematography: 7/10
Acting: 7/10
Editing: 7/10
Sound: 7/10
Score/Soundtrack: 8/10
Production Design: 9/10
Casting: 8/10
Effects: 7/10

Overall Score: 7.2/10

Original Article: https://thefilmguys.blog/reviews/augusts-reviews/the-seagull-2018/… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

GreatMartin

Jun 5, 2018

Annette Bening is one of those actors who will always draw me to a film while I am enjoying watching Saorise Ronan's career and where it is going. Mare Winningham, Brian Dennehy and Elisabeth Moss are dependable actors always doing good work so adding these factors together I decided to goAnnette Bening is one of those actors who will always draw me to a film while I am enjoying watching Saorise Ronan's career and where it is going. Mare Winningham, Brian Dennehy and Elisabeth Moss are dependable actors always doing good work so adding these factors together I decided to go see "The Seagull" instead of "Adrift" which only had the appeal of Shailene Woodley.

I've seen some of Chekhov's plays many years ago but never particularly liked or disliked him and this movie, with a screenplay by Stephen Karam, doesn't sway me one way or another.

For a story about lovers, there is very little love. Irina (Annette Bening) a celebrated, insecure, jealous actress is in love with the much younger successful writer Boris (Corey Stoll) who falls in love with Nina (Saoirse Ronan) a want to be actress much younger than he is and has a budding writer, Konstatin (Billy Howle), Irina's son, who, by the way, is in love with Nina and in turn he is loved by Marsha (Elisabeth Moss), a secret drinker, who is loved by schoolteacher Medvedenko (Michael Zegen). Did I miss anyone? Oh yes, Polina, (Mare Winningham) who runs the house and is married to Shamrayev (Glenn Fleshler) but is in love with Doctor Dorn (Jon Tenney) who is taking care of Sorin (Brian Dennehy) who is dying and is Irina's brother.

"The Seagull" runs 99 minutes and that's a lot of people and stories to cover and many are shortchanged but most have a minute or two, some more, to show what an actor can do with the time they are given. The most striking scenes are the ones between Annette Bening and Corey Stoll during a lover's quarrel and another between her and Billy Howle as she attacks her son and yet holds the audience's sympathy. Both Winningham and Moss get their moment with the former declaring her love for the doctor and the latter explaining why she drinks and is 'mourning' for the life she will lead. Brian Dennehy has a striking scene with Bening as he hits her where her insecurities lie. Bening and Stoll are the standouts of the cast while Howle is too 'modern' to fit in with the rest, going overboard in most of his scenes.

"The Seagull" is shorter than most films are today and, yet, seems longer as it tries to cover too much, too many personalities. Though you will do a lot worse than seeing acting of this caliber bringing their A game, I really can't say yes to this film for an introduction to Chekhov and it might be cut too bare for those who are familiar with his play.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

The3AcademySins

Aug 27, 2018

The Seagull was a hugely disappointing film for me. While it clearly has good production values, the treatment of Chekhov is just boring. I have seen absolutely thrilling, gut-wrenching, and hilarious productions of The Seagull on stage, and this movie just feels really bland and rushed. AThe Seagull was a hugely disappointing film for me. While it clearly has good production values, the treatment of Chekhov is just boring. I have seen absolutely thrilling, gut-wrenching, and hilarious productions of The Seagull on stage, and this movie just feels really bland and rushed. A lot of the acting is just subpar with not a whole lot of effort put behind the performances. If you can go see a good production of The Seagull onstage in New York City or Chicago or Stratford or London or Moscow or at a good regional equity theater, go see that instead.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

JLuis_001

Sep 2, 2019

Bland and unfortunately boring. The cast does seem to be interested in the project but the director fails to exploit their talent and also fails to exploit the script.

This is the case of films with quality of manufacture and production but that falls short with everything else.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Mauro_Lanari

Oct 20, 2019

(Mauro Lanari)
Amorous triangles and quadrangles all theatrically unrequited and lots of very close-ups of Ronin and Bening, then continuous whining, Dennehy who falls asleep and snores, the young protagonist who shoots himself twice. The moviegoer is undecided among which of these behaviors(Mauro Lanari)
Amorous triangles and quadrangles all theatrically unrequited and lots of very close-ups of Ronin and Bening, then continuous whining, Dennehy who falls asleep and snores, the young protagonist who shoots himself twice. The moviegoer is undecided among which of these behaviors to imitate.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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