November

Harrison's 'November' is quite an interesting piece of cinema. Shot with HD camera on a minimum budget, the film take us through the stages of of a young photographer's grief. But for whom is she grieving or who's death is she coming to terms with? That becomes apparent in the end. The movie's divided into three chapters: denial, despair and acceptance (stages of grief). The director presents hints through each stage as the truth slowly unfolds. Harrison's execution is quite simplistic in terms of technique. The visuals have a washed out look but are nonetheless intriguing. He uses a lot of symbolic elements, like the different gloomy colours in each segment, and a gloomy soundtrack. The entire film rests on Courteney Cox and she does an exceptional job. It's great to see her in a different role and the actress needs to do more movies. The supporting cast, that includes James LeGros and Anne Archer are very good. 'November' is quite a well made film. It is thought provoking and dark but many will dislike it most likely because of the theme. Many have complained that there is no plot but, in my opinion, I find that to be a ridiculous statement as the story (which I briefly mentioned earlier) is pretty obvious. Whether one likes it or not, I say 'November' is worth the watch.

This movie had a great structure. I liked exploring the real emotional reactions of "denial", "despair" and "acceptance" when dealing with trauma with the main character played by Courtney Cox. This movie is really difficult to talk about without giving it away and that is the one thing you don't want to happen when watching this movie. Trying to figure it out is what makes this intriguing.

I will say that the movie kept my interest and was terrific up until the ending. It is the type of ending that you can figure out so it doesn't "cheat" you. But it still wasn't a satisfying ending. Why? Because there were too many elements that were thrown in and even though I can understand why the main character would go through the thought processes that she did, I don't think that I would if I were in her shoes. That is, if I understood the ending properly.

I was lucky enough to see this film at the Sundance Film Festival (2004). It is a very intense thriller in which Courteney Cox (very different from her Friends work) plays a photographer whose boyfriend (the always excellent James Legros) is shot and killed in a corner store robbery.

The movie starts to get more complicated as Cox's character begins to have flashbacks of the event, replaying it in different scenarios and subtle variations. In each version, we seem to get closer to the "truth" of the actual event.

The film is small in scale, but looks and sounds terrific. I couldn't quite believe it when the director said it was shot in 15 days.

It is surprisingly emotional, while at the same time, intellectually demanding. I can't wait to see this film again when it's released. It is a movie that will undoubtedly benefit from multiple viewings. 10/10

I saw this film on a whim. I had not great expectations for either the film or Courtney Cox, who I remembered as an airhead on Friends. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I was taken in within the first few minutes and spent my time trying to figure out what actually happened. I had several theories, but it was not until the end that the secret is revealed. My jaw dropped to the floor and I knew that I had seen a beautiful work of art. I had to watch it again to see if I could pick out the clues. There were very few. But it made perfect sense. Cox was wonderful! Her performance in this movie made a fan out of me. I cannot wait for her next dramatic role. The story, the directing, the cinematography as well as the acting are superb. I cannot recommend this movie any more than 'see it' Make up your own mind, but give it a chance. You will be amazed.

Greetings again from the darkness. Although I never got the "Friends" fascination, I have always thought Courtney Cox has potential as a movie actress. On this one point, I believe "November" succeeds. She does have a nice screen presence, even when made out to be frumpy, deceitful and purposefully confusing.

This mess of a movie is presented by two relative new comers to the movie biz, director Greg Harrison and writer Benjamin Brand. Both may have something to offer, but it definitely is not on display here. The movie bills itself as a psychological thriller, but the best of these are smart, exciting and intense. This one is only intense for the viewer as we try to assemble the mish-mash of pieces. The M Night Shyamalan wanna-bes use Courtney's photos as clues to what really happened at the crime scene. The use of color change (Courtney's hand bag) and lens focus are also supposed to "assist" us with the timeline and understanding the real story. As the detective says in one scene, "it is too artsy for its own good".

The twists on the Anne Archer (as Courtney's mom) scene are fun to watch, James LeGros is capable as the murdered boyfriend, and the supporting cast is fine, but what kills this one is the failed presentation. I always admire filmmakers who will take a risk (there aren't enough of them), but this one proves there is little uglier than when that risk fails.