After vampires, werewolves, and zombies, witches are the next supernatural creatures to get a shot at teen romance with Beautiful Creatures. Based on the book by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, I have to admit this movie snuck beneath my radar, and I was pleasantly surprised, especially since it is marketed squarely at those mourning the ending of the Twilight franchise. Set in the fictional town of Gatlin, South Carolina, the movie follows Ethan Wate (Alden Ehrenreich) and Lena Duchannes (Alice Engelert), two outsiders who find themselves mysteriously drawn to each other. To complicate matters, Lena is a Caster (a witch to you and me), who, on her 16th birthday, will undergo The Claiming, which forever ties her soul to either the Light or Dark. Throw in an ancient curse for good measure, and these kids do not have it easy.
One of the main reason I liked this movie was the fact Lena and Ethan make such a likable couple. They are not defined by their love, so consumed by it that is all they can think or talk about (unlike a certain sparkly vampire and his mate), and Ehrenreich and Englert (daughter of director Jane Campion) have such a great chemistry together, sparking off each other nicely and exchanging some humorous pieces of dialogue. At times the movie plays like a straight romance, their first meeting on a rain drenched road could have been placed into any generic tear jerker, and writer/director Richard LaGravenese takes his time building the relationship, even though it feels a bit rushed when it kicks into high gear. The story is smartly written, interesting enough to grab your attention, and at times keeps you guessing on where it will head. It has fun with magic casting, presenting it in unique ways. The story does start to become muddled mid way through the second act, plot points are introduced, then immediately dropped only to appear again at the end with no explanation. The finale is a bit all over the place, but it does wrap the story up very nicley. The movie also feels oddly clipped in places, as if there was more story there but it was edited out to save time, with events happening for no discernible reason, and the movie expecting us just to accept them and move on. Despite these faults though, it was still an enjoyable ride.
As I've said before, the two leads are instantly likable, and play their parts to a tee. The older guard, Jeremy Irons and Emma Thompson (having alot of fun adopting southern drawls), offer able support, hamming it up with the best of them as the representatives of the Light and Dark, respectively. In any other movie, this would be cringe worthy, but here is oddly acceptable, and Irons' obsession with Google does raise a few chuckles. Emmy Rossum, as Lena's cousin Ridley, claimed by the Dark and absolutely loving it, is probably the most memorable, turning the typical bad girl role all the way up to eleven.
While this won't be for everyone, I found myself enjoying this far more than I thought I would. For the week that's in it, if you are looking for a good date movie, this is the one for you.
One of the main reason I liked this movie was the fact Lena and Ethan make such a likable couple. They are not defined by their love, so consumed by it that is all they can think or talk about (unlike a certain sparkly vampire and his mate), and Ehrenreich and Englert (daughter of director Jane Campion) have such a great chemistry together, sparking off each other nicely and exchanging some humorous pieces of dialogue. At times the movie plays like a straight romance, their first meeting on a rain drenched road could have been placed into any generic tear jerker, and writer/director Richard LaGravenese takes his time building the relationship, even though it feels a bit rushed when it kicks into high gear. The story is smartly written, interesting enough to grab your attention, and at times keeps you guessing on where it will head. It has fun with magic casting, presenting it in unique ways. The story does start to become muddled mid way through the second act, plot points are introduced, then immediately dropped only to appear again at the end with no explanation. The finale is a bit all over the place, but it does wrap the story up very nicley. The movie also feels oddly clipped in places, as if there was more story there but it was edited out to save time, with events happening for no discernible reason, and the movie expecting us just to accept them and move on. Despite these faults though, it was still an enjoyable ride.
As I've said before, the two leads are instantly likable, and play their parts to a tee. The older guard, Jeremy Irons and Emma Thompson (having alot of fun adopting southern drawls), offer able support, hamming it up with the best of them as the representatives of the Light and Dark, respectively. In any other movie, this would be cringe worthy, but here is oddly acceptable, and Irons' obsession with Google does raise a few chuckles. Emmy Rossum, as Lena's cousin Ridley, claimed by the Dark and absolutely loving it, is probably the most memorable, turning the typical bad girl role all the way up to eleven.
While this won't be for everyone, I found myself enjoying this far more than I thought I would. For the week that's in it, if you are looking for a good date movie, this is the one for you.
