First Hit: A mediocre meandering of possibly a compelling story.
This film is about a wealthy family that meandered around Europe with little purpose.
The father, Brooks Baekeland, (played by Stephen Dillane) is an intelligent man whose Grandfather discovered plastic and therefore he’s not had to do much in life except be interesting.
Barbara Baekeland (played by Julianne Moore) is Brook’s American wife. She is a painter, a bit crass in her attitude, and a socialite whose role was to make sure they were connected to people of social standing.
Their son (played as a young boy and as a young adult by Barney Clark and Eddie Redmayne respectively) is obsessed over and treated more as a friend by his mother versus a child.
There is very little psychological digging in this drama to suggest the deep abusive sickness that permeated this family and ultimately resulted in the father having an affair with his son’s girlfriend, the mother having sex with her son, and then his killing her and later her mother both with a knife.
This film moved laboriously along with little digging and discovery. It is a cursory view of the story. I would hold the writer and director at fault for the lack of depth and cohesiveness.
Overall: Although there are moments of some good acting, in the end this is not even a video rental film.