Average, quickly forgotten.
THE BITTER CHAMBER is considered a remake of Pupi Avati's masterly HOUSE WITH WINDOWS THAT LAUGHED, however it bears only a superficial resemblance to the earlier film, and it doesn't begin to approach its creepy effectiveness.
"The Bitter Chamber" is an exercise in style with little behind it and few chills. It is well produced, with consistently dark, solemn atmospherics, but the screenplay's austerity and plodding familiarity (we've seen variations of this plot many times before) don't support the aesthetics, and fail to hold one's interest for very long.
The lead actor has few expressions beyond a doe-eyed, open-mouthed observational perplexity. His blandness soon makes him an enervating, not to mention slight, presence.
The film deserves some praise for its technical aptitude, but the memory of it is as evanescent and wispy as a fleeting encounter with someone unremarkable.
"The Bitter Chamber" is an exercise in style with little behind it and few chills. It is well produced, with consistently dark, solemn atmospherics, but the screenplay's austerity and plodding familiarity (we've seen variations of this plot many times before) don't support the aesthetics, and fail to hold one's interest for very long.
The lead actor has few expressions beyond a doe-eyed, open-mouthed observational perplexity. His blandness soon makes him an enervating, not to mention slight, presence.
The film deserves some praise for its technical aptitude, but the memory of it is as evanescent and wispy as a fleeting encounter with someone unremarkable.
- Oliver_Lenhardt
- 23 ago 2002