The Frame

Milan Kundera’s novel was one of my favorite reads last year, and I knew any film version was going to have a lot to live up to, especially given the self-conscious, postmodern, meandering narrative technique (which was one of my favorite things about the book). The film doesn’t quite make it, though it gives it a fighting try. It does a great job with the segment about the Czech uprising, and Lena Olin is an absolute revelation. But the beauty of the book is its expression of internalization, and as much as I love film, that’s one thing it can’t match. I did love the characters as I watched the film, but I honestly don’t think I would have if I didn’t already love them from the book. I sort of wish I had watched it before reading the book to see what my reaction would have been coming in blind. Because it is a beautiful film at times, mysterious and entrancing. Just not as much as the book.
Well Above Average