Basil - Amor e Ódio

Basil hooks up with the grungy Christian Slater, who helps hook him up with the object of his lust, played by Claire Forlani.

And it all goes downhill from there. Seems like it might've been an ok Victoria melodrama to read, but on film, it's just boring.

It's a tempting story about lust, deception, revenge and obsession. Nothing's wrong with this movie, the three eye catching main cast were doing fine for the film, but the story itself just lack the passion of becoming a powerful drama.

After the fast and intriguing pace from the midway of the movie until the edge, the movie was washed off by a poorly executed climax which made it ended up so cliché. It's not a mainstream ending but at the same time looks so lame and motiveless. Too bad.

But again I think this is still a better romantic thriller film than most teenage romantic movie you'll find everywhere this day. But it was surely a movie only to watch when you're in the mood.

This movie is based on Wilkie Collins' (author of Moonstone and Woman int White) little known 2nd novel "Basil". The story is an unexpected combination of a Victorian Gothic novel with lust, passion, betrayal, revenge and more. It comes across as more sensational and modern than one would expect from a story from the mid 1800s. I think the screenplay expanded upon the novel. The plot twists are quite startling and some aspects of the story don't make that much sense in a but it's a suspenseful and satisfying yarn to watch on screen.

The filming is quite well done with atmospheric locations and sets. The cast is interesting with Jared Leto and Christian Slater both playing English characters with accents that aren't quite spot on of course. Half Italian Claire Forlani plays an English lady although she has a slightly Mediterranean look.

Instead of watching another adaptation of Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights give this one a chance.

"Basil" is a curiously compelling film. I rented it purely because it "looked Victorian" and I was in the mood for something different. It turned out to be very Victorian, a family saga set somewhere in the 19th Century. Wealthy, but not titled, father has two sons. His pompous and hypocritical Victorian "family values" provide the dramatic force for the story -- otherwise, it's just a bland Harlequin-type romance. The father's confrontations with sons over women end each time with decisions totally alien to our modern sensibilities. Very jarring. Jared Leto as Basil is a little strained in his acting, but always nice to look at. C. Slater is surprisingly (and obviously) good in this "historical" role, and he has a secret which provides a twist near the end. The end itself provides a strange turn that may make you wonder if Basil wouldn't have been happier in a new-age commune in modern New Mexico. Of course, it is basically a chick-flick....

"Basil" is a film that has all the ingredients of a classic soap opera. There's plenty of love deception, jealousy, a rich man who falls in love with a poor girl etc. But that's not one more and forgettable soap opera like the others. First of all, the film is based on a novel written by Wilkie Collins, one of the most important English writers of the 19o. century (a great friend of Charles Dickens) and that makes a great difference. On the other hand, this film has a nice direction and a fine cast, never sliding in hollow sentimentalism. Maybe the only negative point is that the plot is too predictable but even though you can still have a good time watching the film.