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The Human Stain (2003)
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Anthony Hopkins, Gary Sinese, Ed Harris, Wentworth Miller
Screenwriter: Nick Meyers
Producer: Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, Scott Steindorff
Composer: Rachel Portman
Reviews
With all the legs flailing, earnest speechifying, hot-headed outbursts, and mild abuse of crockery, Robert Benton's adaptation feels more like a fat Greek wedding than an Ancient Greek tragedy.
This is such a good story, and such a gifted cast and crew, that watching the film go off the rails is a real tragedy.
Both Nicole Kidman and Anthony Hopkins are vastly miscast in Robert Benton's poor adaptation of Philip Roth's poignant novel, one of the few works about contempo academic battlefields.
The acting is phenomenal (especially Harris), and the film will be a nice challenge for those in search of one.
The film's frame groans in its attempt to contain such a complex story, and its actors ask us to accept implausible things... but it's ultimately rewarding.
A tricky adaptation of an unlikely novel that nevertheless goes almost as wrong as possible...prey to the most amateur varieties of structural and tonal errors.
In an obvious stretch, Kidman’s acting calls attention to itself, especially with her broad gestures.
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by: MovieSamurai 2/2/06


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