Beautiful Creatures
Beautiful Creatures hit our cinemas last week. If you aren’t a teenage girl who is immersed in supernatural pre-pubescent fiction then this film would have come out of nowhere for most of you. After all, Twilight ended (hurrah) last year and there isn’t really much for fans to drop their ovaries over until The Host comes out later this year. In steps Beautiful Creatures based on the books by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. And if you have seen the trailer, you might be thinking that this would be worth a go. And you’d think wrong. Sort of.
(If by dark secrets they mean obvious plot twists.)
Set in the deep south, Beautiful Creatures is about Ethan who wants anything to get out of his small town Gaitlin. When recluse Macon Ravenwood has his niece Lena come live with him, Ethan is intrigued by this mysterious girl. This is all well and Twilight so far as Lena has a secret. She is a caster and on her 16th birthday, her powers will be claimed either to the light or the dark. With only days until her claiming, Lena and Ethan must find a way for their love to be and to stop evil Sarafine from taking Lena to the dark side.
Why Is it Bad?
(Half way through the movie is the wrong time to discover the script.)
When filmmakers use the term “Based on a…” they are either really faithful or they are just use the title. Beautiful Creatures leans more to the latter so this isn’t going to please many fans of the book. The film rips through the source material and makes the alright book into a choppy and ridiculous movie. This means that the drama, instead of building, comes in random waves. There is the super soft and silly romance scenes followed by dark intense “WE ARE IN DANGER” scenes followed by resolution. It goes around in circles ending with a simple film that is difficult to understand.
Plus, for a film about witches there isn’t that much magic used and when it is, it isn’t suspenseful or terrific; it’s actually quite rubbish. Talking about rubbish, Sarafine as “the most powerful dark caster” is a let-down. Emma Thompson tries her best but with the strained plot she falters in the end. As too do most of her adult compadres; Viola Davis is a mash of several characters (of her own demand, by the way) so her role is confusing. Very much like Jeremy Irons accent as Macon Ravenwood who is deeply southern one minute and well refined the next. By the end of it, your head will be throbbing from confusion.
Why Is It Good?
(He actually breaks into French...)
(I'm joking but it wouldn't surprise him.)
The great thing about Beautiful Creatures is that it isn’t Twilight. Where the fanged foes romped around pouting ever so seriously, Beautiful Creatures skips along singing. It knows from the over saturated Southern voice over introduction that it’s going to flop so it goes down swinging. At times it intentional makes you laugh with puns or a sex joke here or there. While interviews may have you fooled that actors are taking this all too intensely, the product just shows that they fooled around and knew that they weren’t a great classic. It’s certainly worth a watch for the titters whether they wanted you too or not.
(There is less lip biting and more trying to act....Take not Kristen Stewart.)
And the lead characters are believable as a couple despite the supernatural element. Deciding to argue as normal people instead of worship each other, Ethan and Lena are realistic. And Alden Ehrenreich is brilliant goofy as a mortal in other his head.
Also, on a small side note, Emmy Rossum is fantastic as Ridley. Because as a Siren she looks like this.
And this.
(So hot I screamed Hot diggity damn..)
It’s great eye candy.
Look, its half term for a lot of children and we all need something to keep those hormonally charged away from another riot. So Beautiful Creatures is entertaining but it isn’t worth spending too much money on. Certainly if you are sick of watching Django (never) and there is nothing to watch, then do so. But you’re best waiting until it comes out on DVD.
Otherwise, your wallet is going to feel it.
TTFN
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