El secreto

I really don't know where to start. The characters weren't that believable at all. The development they have gone through (as you see them in their youth as well) and the development they go through during the movie just doesn't make sense to me.

And the plot, you can smell something similar to a plot here and there, but that is as close as you get. The first 15-20 minutes it works, it feels like an ordinary movie. But then it just breaks down and you wonder what the message is, what the story is, what the heck this movie is supposed to convey.

In summary it's a pointless flick that doesn't strike any chords in me anyway.

Matthew Warchus directed 'Simpatico' has an interesting premise, but the advantage of it's promising concept, doesn't really reflect on celluloid. Reason? The Screenplay is stretched & slightly unspoken. It offers a few interesting moments in the first hour, but the second hour doesn't offer much.

'Simpatico' is a tale of betrayal, greed, vengeance & complications. Though adapted by a play, this drama begins well, but, as told before, drags itself too much towards the end, and thus, the impact goes amiss.

Matthew Warchus has directed this story fairly. Cinematography is perfect. Editing is passable. Acting Wise: Nick Nolte is just about okay. Jeff Bridges is decent, while Sharon Stone gets very limited scope. Albert Finney and Catherine Keener are noticeable.

On the whole, An Average Fare, At Best.

Vinnie Webb (Nick Nolte), Lyle (Jeff Bridges) and Rosie Carter (Sharon Stone) were very good friends many years back and used to scam at races. Fast forward to 20 years and they all took different roads; Vinnie looks like a hobo with drinking problems and can't even pay his rent, Lyle and Rosie are divorced but are about to sell their prize stallion Simpatico. After Vinnie manages to steal Lyle's wallet unknown to him, he goes to Kentucky for blackmail an official that uncovers their past scams.

In the first half SIMPATICO looked decent but as it progressed, it became confusing and dull. At times Vinnie's motives looked unclear while Lyle spent most of his time shouting, and the scene where Rosie rides Simpatico for the last time and then shoots him... why they had to put it? It was also badly edited and not likeable. Nolte, Bridges and Stone give their best with the material given, but they surely deserved better than this. And everything else about the film is just as forgettable.

Not a terrible movie but very bland instead, just like eating toast: not that bad but something nobody would ever look forward to.

Tale of long-past racing scam resurfacing to change the diverse lives of its perpetrators and victims isn't particularly subtle, with transformations and transferences flying around like abandoned betting slips, but it's very well acted by a dream cast (no less engaging for the fact that they don't all seem to be in quite the same film) and never loses its basic finesse. In its early stretches, as the pieces of the plot fall into place, the film builds a highly effective sense of escalating jeopardy, and the initial gambits on the theme of identity and impermanence are effective, leveling out a bit as thematic considerations seem to overtake the characters. Still, it has a sleek poise, and debuting director Warchus shows a distinct nose for the finish line - the film's closing scenes seem about right on their own terms, even if you're not sure about all the stuff that led you there (the horse Simpatico for instance seems ultimately to be carrying more symbolic weight than the course of the film supports).

You'd think that a movie with the acting power of Nick Nolte, Jeff Bridges, and Sharon Stone would be one to watch. Well.......it is and it isn't.

First off, I'd never in my life thought I'd see Nolte and Bridges in the same movie. Talk about an odd pairing!

With that out of the way, they both put in good performances, as does Stone. The star of this movie though is Albert Finney. His performance is the best of all the parts in this movie.

Unfortunately the plot, involving a racing scam many years ago which resurfaces, is only mildly interesting at best. It seems almost a shame to have such good performances wasted on such a story. Still, it's worth a watch if nothing else is on.