Actualités

A literary-minded feature about growing up sexually and struggling to find contentment in 1960s-70s England, "Metroland" is only fitfully interesting and won't generate much interest with domestic audiences in limited release.

Although it stars Emily Watson, Christian Bale and young French star Elsa Zylberstein, the unrated Lions Gate release is built around a hoary conflict between selling out and thumbing one's nose at the establishment, with commuter trains providing the symbol of either escaping or settling into a middle-class routine.

In the early 1960s, Chris (Bale) and Toni (Lee Ross) were best friends growing up on the outskirts of London at the end of the underground line known as "Metroland". A budding photographer with little experience, rebellious Chris travels to Paris and meets a sexy, sweet French girl, Annick (Zylberstein), while Toni also splits and never looks back.

Chris is a happy bohemian until he meets Marion (Watson), an adventurous young English woman, and falls for her. Years later, Chris and Marion have a family and he is starting to grow restless -- he fantasizes about a nonmonogamous relationship -- when Toni returns to stir things up.

Director Philip Saville and screenwriter Adrian Hodges, adapting Julian Barnes' novel, use a flashback structure, with most of the story taking place in 1968 and 1977. Many scenes are engaging with the leads immersed in their roles, but the overall scheme grows tiresomely repetitive.

Toni's hatred of what Chris has become is made abundantly clear, but there's not much doubt about what the latter's final stand on the matter will be. Chris' relationship with Marion goes through a major crisis when he cheats on her. While emerging as a potential rival for Marion, Toni never tires of baiting Chris with snarling condescension, but his idealism is less than inspiring.

Bale is well-cast and Watson plays a fairly ordinary character for a change, while Zylberstein lights up the screen. All three get into the sensuous spirit with numerous scenes of nudity. But the pacing is uneven and the filmmaking is uneventful. Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits fame contributes a spunky rock score.

METROLAND

Lions Gate Releasing

Pandora Cinema presents

a Blue Horizon/Mact/Filmania production

in association with the Arts Council of England

Credits: Director: Philip Saville; Producer: Andrew Bendel; Screenwriter: Adrian Hodges; Director of photography: Jean-Francois Robin; Production designer: Don Taylor; Editor: Greg Miller; Costume designer: Jenny Beavan; Music: Mark Knopfler; Casting: Deborah Brown. Cast: Chris: Christian Bale; Toni: Lee Ross; Annick: Elsa Zylberstein; Marion: Emily Watson; Henri: Rufus; Dave: Jonathan Aris; Mickey: Ifan Meredith. No MPAA Rating. Color/stereo. Running time -- 102 minutes.