2009 Directed by Emily Young
After a frantic suicide attempt, Veronika awakens inside a mysterious mental asylum. Under the supervision of an unorthodox psychiatrist who specializes in controversial treatment, Veronika learns that she has only weeks to live.
Sarah Michelle Gellar David Thewlis Jonathan Tucker Erika Christensen Melissa Leo Erica Gimpel Waleed Zuaiter Victor Slezak Adrian Martinez Florencia Lozano Barbara Sukowa Matthew Cowles Rena Owen Holter Graham Stuart Rudin Ward Horton Meg Gibson John Farrer Rafael Sardina Jill Marie Lawrence Lisette Bross Gregory Marcel Nicolette Hart Victor Steinbach Jeff Applegate Jessica Kaye Tatiana Maher Al Roffe David Skeist Show All…
Chris Hanley Jonathan Bross Robert Ogden Barnum Sriram Das Ravi Dattatreya Kevin Scott Frakes Terry Dougas Mitchell Goldman Simon Horsman Shara Kay Corinne Nordmann Stephan Paternot
Moving relationship stories Humanity and the world around us Relationship comedy emotional, emotion, sad, drama or illness death, profound, symbolism, philosophical or vision artists, biography, musician, songs or emotional sex, sexual, relationships, erotic or sensual romance, emotion, relationships, feelings or captivating Show All…
Unlike the novel, it's based on. The movie is dull, inconsistent, and lacking in depth.
It may seem that, with the track record she has had during the aughts, Sarah Michelle Gellar really couldn’t find her foot in a great role after Buffy the Vampire Slayer went off-air. What did she really have to flex her thespian muscle? The Grudge movies? One thing that I feel many shouldn’t really jump to is hating on the actress because, outside of the mainstream films she’s done, Gellar has proven that she has what it takes to deliver, if only she has the right material to work with. Fortunately, she has found that type of role. Sadly, her film was stuck in distribution limbo.
If I mentioned the film’s title, Veronika Decides to Die, you’ll probably just shrug…
If the whole movie was like the first half then I wouldn't hesitate in giving it a 5/5 but the second half loses that cutting maximalist tone. However, I didn't hate it and it was beautiful to see Veronika learning how to live life again. Personally, I have had a lot of thoughts like Veronika from time to time and seeing her gain confidence through her own piano playing is something I can heavily relate to. I wish more films touched on how music can affect you emotionally and get you through turmoil. I would've preferred if the second half wasn't centred around a romance but the film has such a genuine emotional core that I can't get mad at…
Bait and switch drivel. Advertised as a thriller but ends up as a snore-fest romantic something (certainly not comedy).
Yeah sure whatever. Marketed as an asylum thriller but no, it's a lame romance instead. Was hoping for some sort of underrated gem but oh man, nope.
david thewlis i am always available.
initially i thought this felt like a bad english adaptation of a good foreign film. i then realized it was a bad english adaption of a - possibly decent but likely overly sentimental - foreign language novel. i didn’t initially realize it was from the author of the alchemist. so my bad.
got the strong notional that nobody working on this has ever been suicidal in any way. amazing for them but this was in no way impactful for me on that front.
sarah michelle gellar feels extremely miscast. and that was a main contributing factor to my last point.
there was something good in here but it’s burried in too much meritocracy and…
i really really really love this concept and find it so weird how this isn't discussed on film as much as it could/should
my main nitpick is that i wish we spent more time with veronika instead of focusing on a romance because life is so more than finding a person.
but sarah michelle gellar, please come outta retirement sweetie, i beg of you
The best intentions...
The concept of the film is definitely of interest. The film purports to take a look into the life of a woman living with depression who attempts to commit suicide. All the pieces are seemingly in place: a capable cast, a powerful subject, interesting commentary, and some twists that are effective. The execution completely kills it though.
The film is almost two hours long but it feels like seventy minutes. This is usually viewed as a good thing but it's quite the opposite here. The reason the film feels so brisk is that the unfolding of the plot is completely haphazard. It seldom makes sense from scene to scene as it is just skipping around all over…
I don't know whether it's the director, the writers behind the adaptation, or Paulo Coelho's source material that is to blame most for the letdowns I felt throughout most of this movie. I haven't read Coelho's novel, and I'm not sure I'll be in a hurry to do so after this experience. I do however think there is a good story hiding within, but it's just not released.
It's a shame, for acting performances from the likes of David Thewlis, Melissa Leo, Sarah Michelle Gellar and--even--Erika Christensen are well above what this level of storytelling deserved.
It's like it misses all the beats. We know the next steps at least two or three minutes before they happen, and it's really…
