Often ponderous, sometimes pretentious and mostly clichéd, this contrived meditation on longing and loss feels like a missed opportunity.

The English-language feature debut of Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai (In the Mood for Love) is beautifully shot at times, with its neon colors and moody, dreamy style. Other times his photography is off-putting and self-consciously arty. (For instance, the blueberry pie that serves as a key symbol in the story looks lurid and frighteningly unappetizing.)

The narrative falls flat and the characters have little dimension. The dialogue, co-written by Wong and screenwriter Lawrence Block, often sounds awkward. Characters make pronouncements rather than observations.

We meet Elizabeth — played naturally but a bit dully by singer Norah Jones — just as she learns she has been cheated on and dumped. Undone, she latches on to the diner where her beloved was spotted with another woman. The diner owner, affably played by Jude Law, identifies all his customers by their meal orders. She goes to the diner to leave a set of her ex's keys, and from there, a formulaic device involving a jar of keys kicks in.

Her breakup leads Elizabeth to move nomadically across the USA, taking a series of waitress jobs and avoiding entanglements in an effort to escape her emotional pain. Along the way she meets a lovelorn alcoholic cop (David Strathairn) and his free-spirited wife (Rachel Weisz). It's hard to imagine either of these talented actors giving less-than-impressive performances, but somehow they manage, thanks mostly to the banal dialogue they are forced to speak.

Elizabeth's next stop is Nevada, where she meets a manipulative compulsive gambler (Natalie Portman). That story line goes nowhere — slowly and dully.

It would seem we are meant to glean that in her journey Elizabeth faces down her own heartbreak and empathically absorbs the troubles of those she meets.

Somehow through this, she overcomes her loneliness and learns to love and trust again. But none of this really comes through on the screen.

Mostly, My Blueberry Nights is irritating and plodding, saved only slightly by Law's lively performance.

Enlarge The Weinstein Co. Don't know why . . . Norah Jones makes her movie debut as Elizabeth.

ADVERTISEMENT

Iconocast is about learning and teaching without borders; we offer eMarketing, Internet Advertising, Internet Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing, Online Branding, and eMarketing News Services.

Iconocast Home Page

Contact Iconocast

Iconocast Health Articles

© 2003-07. ICONOCAST is a trademark of iconocast.com.