I will complain about slow films. If the story doesn’t grab us enough to go with the pacing, or if the pacing doesn’t pay off with a worthy ending, I will speak out. I speak out because there are times when the slow pace of films will work magic and create a sense of life and will be used to build to an ending that makes you actually feel something wonderful. I say this because I just saw SWEETHEART a slowly paced film about a grandmother and her grandson.
The film is the story of a mother who sends her young son
off to stay with his stern grandmother. She is very old school Italian; he is a
modern kid with a cellphone. Of course they clash. As he tries to deal with the
older woman, he is also trying to make friends with the kids his age, in
particular a cute girl.
Moving at the speed of life SWEETHEART slowly works its
magic. It’s a film that takes its time building characters. While in the early
stages of the film we may want things to move a bit faster, there is a point
where we settle in and go with it. We enjoy that we have time with the people
on screen. We are not so much observing but hanging out with them. And by
taking things at a slower pace the story doesn’t have to take short cuts to
show us how people feel or are. We see it before us. We really see the characters open up in looks
and motions. We get true visual clues to the characters and aren’t required to
have people say how or who they are.
Did I say this cast rocks. This is the sort of film where
they should get an ensemble award. They aren’t actors but people.
This film is absolute magic.
If you are willing to let a film move at its own speed,
especially when it pays off with a genuine emotive ending, see SWEETHEART
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