The Souvenir (2019)

Based on a true story: in the 1980s, Julie (Honor Swinton Byrne) is a young British woman from a wealthy family and attending film school. She hooks up with Anthony (Tom Burke) who gradually takes advantage of her while trying to hide his serious personality flaws and habits.

Swinton Byrne does not, in any way, give a bad performance; in fact, it is rather good. But she lacks the depth and subtlety required to carry the main role in a two-hour movie. Adding to the trouble is Burke whose Tom is as bland as kale and as common as a condo construction project in downtown Toronto. This character is so lacking in charisma and charm that the film becomes an unintentional mystery as the viewer is left to wonder what Julie could possibly see in him with or without his shortcomings.

A sad irony is a scene in the film in which a film teacher explains that "Psycho" was a success as most scenes were normal, thus making its abnormal, frightening scenes stand out more. If only writer/director Joanna Hogg had followed the advice that she had written for one of her secondary characters. While the narrative of "The Souvenir" is consistent, it does not have any scene that stands out, making it long and dull.

A saving grace was the presence of Tilda Swinton (Swinton Byrne's real-life mother) portraying Julie's mother - emphasis on the word 'presence' which was missing in the primary performances. The film would have benefited with more scenes that included Swinton Senior.

"The Souvenir" is hyper-praised in the most baffling of ways by most critics. One of the praises is that it's based on a true story. Well, there are billions of true stories that don't make good films. Sadly, "The Souvenir" is one of them.

Fmovies: I had high hopes based on capsule reviews I read, but this is an awful film. Why should anyone care about a self-destructive junkie who has had every advantage in his life and a fool who is a hopelessly romantic enabler? The one redeeming feature is that the cinematography is good. But it doesn't help the story. I assume it is somewhat autobiographical. How sad. It is absolutely dreadful!

If you think your life is dreary, or you're sometimes not quite sure, have pity on posterity. Eschew self-portraiture.

The Souvenir fmovies. Hard to imagine that they are making a part 2. I couldn't even get through part 1.

I usually get in line to see a film that has anything to do with A24 film producers. Also 92/100 meta critic rating! Were they watching the same film! It was so boring and has nothing going for it. The characters are not interesting and the story is pointless. The critics are dead wrong about this one in my opinion. Avoid at all costs! It'll bore you to death, that coming from a guy who loves slow burn films.

I was so genuinely bored while watching this movie that I found myself checking the time on my phone constantly throughout. The movie tries to give you a taste of the everyday life of a young woman in film school who is juggling her work and older boyfriend who happens to be an addict, however it is unbearably dreary and dull. The main character is boring and has no defining personality other than being a pushover film student, and her catering to her manipulative boyfriend does not encourage any sympathy. This movie is basically a vignette of nothing happening.