underrated; it's a compelling tale of two brothers, alike only in that they cross that line they can never return

Quinoa1984

Once again, Allen, in England for the third and (possibly) final time as a filmmaker, treads into the waters of crime and agony, where 'ordinary' people commit acts of nature that leave them into a complete existential upheaval. Cassandra's Dream might not be the best of the lot that Allen has carved out- his two most notable examples being Match Point and Crimes & Misdemeanors- but it's still a damn good story, with characters to care about as they descend into the depths of their own making. To say that it isn't what the critics have been saying (which is shallow shadow of Match Point and, especially, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead) is an understatement, even if it's less than a masterpiece.

Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell- who should likely bring even more less-than-senior-citizen-aged audiences to see the movie than did Match Point's cast- star as middle-class blokes who have their own financial woes, which grow exponentially for Farrell's Terry after he has gambling debts up to his ears. They get into a deal with their wealthy uncle played by Tom Wilkinson (don't we all have one, not quite like this one of course), where he'll help them start over (for McGregor's Ian a whole new start with a hot Hayley Atwell in California), but on one condition: a hit on a man who may testify on the uncle and put him in jail till the end of his days.

Then begins the downhill slope of the characters, with the whole (maybe obvious but effective) idea that "there's no going back" after getting "rid of" somebody innocent. Allen has a pretty basic premise to work with, and it does have the one similarity of two-brothers-in-trouble-and-do-a-crime, but that's as far as it goes really. While, to be sure, Allen is no Sidney Lumet in getting the harshest dramatic vibe possible out of his genre piece, he still garners some affecting stuff here, though in a different form with the crime-and-punishment angle, which is more then like a redux of M.P.

What makes it work a lot better than just an average genre piece, with quintessential Philip Glass music in tow(an unusual, good bit for Allen who always uses old jazz and classical), is the dynamic of the brothers, and how they each want to get out of where they're at in life. They can't stand being in their solid middle class roots, Ian at his father's restaurant and Terry as an auto mechanic, and want more for themselves and for their respective love interests. But there's also a personality split: Ian is more shifty, out for himself, a much truer criminal mind who justifies everything he does, chiefly the homicide, as doing better for himself (and, as well, using that against Terry later on with him and Uncle going down with him), while Terry has complete guilt, if not fortitude in his conscience, for what he will do and later does.

It helps that McGregor and Farrell are very good in their roles, particularly Farrell who's had less than stellar days as an actor lately, as they just dig deep into the problem they face, or try not to face as case might be. Wilkinson, for the few scenes he appears, is as usual brilliant. And Allen actually pumps up the suspense and tragedy with some slices of dark comedy (like an accidental meeting of Mr. Burns, the intended hit, and the brothers at a bar), which gives some further life to his material. At the end of the day, Cassandra's Dream doesn't hit it out of the park, but it's a lot better than you might have heard; the story of a crime tearing up two distinct personalities.

score 8/10

Quinoa1984 19 January 2008

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw1803314/