Beautiful Creatures (2013)

Director: Richard LaGravenese

Starring: Alice Englert, Viola Davis, Emma Thompson

Ethan Wate longs to escape his small southern town. He meets a mysterious new girl, Lena Duchannes. Together, they uncover dark secrets about their respective families, their history, and their town.

I didn’t want to, but one can’t help but compare this to ‘Twilight’. One has to admit, it is very similar themed – only this is not about a vampire family, but about a family who has supernatural powers.

The love story (between Ethan and Lena) is predictable, cliched, and typical Hollywood material. Why did Lena trust Ethan so quickly to reveal her – and her family’s – secret? She hardly knew him, and didn’t even want him around in the first place. Ethan was also far too persistent and not realistic.

Whenever there’s a book adaptation people always compare the book to the film. They are different mediums altogether and in my opinion shouldn’t be compared. Fortunately, I don’t read books and therefore have nothing to compare it with. As a film, it was (sort of) engaging enough to keep me entertained. The film features a great production design, interesting visuals, great costumes, and a good soundtrack.

The film’s highlight undoubtedly is Jeremy Irons as Macon Ravenwood. This man has such an amazing presence when he’s on screen that everyone and everything around him seem insignificant. The voice, the charm, and his amazing acting skills that encapsulates the very essence of what performing arts is all about. Jeremy Irons is fabulous.

The film’s climax was also a bit cliched, and screams for a sequel. Unfortunately – since the film was deemed a box office bomb – this was not to be…

Would I watch it again? No. Not even sure I’m really going to remember everything here.