It owes its air of mystery to a piece of narrative trickery that’s both obnoxiously manipulative and insultingly obvious.
The Other Man (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:34
Fresh:6
Rotten:28
Average Rating:4.1/10
Consensus: Despite the best efforts of a talented cast, The Other Man is talky, witless, and tension-free.
Rated: Not Rated
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Sep 11, 2009 Limited
Synopsis:
Based on a short story by Bernhard Schlink, The Other Man is a love story about a man (Liam Neeson) who discovers that his wife (Laura Linney) has been involved with another man (Antonio Banderas)....
Based on a short story by Bernhard Schlink, The Other Man is a love story about a man (Liam Neeson) who discovers that his wife (Laura Linney) has been involved with another man (Antonio Banderas). The husband sets out to find the other man, and forms an unusual friendship with him; through a series of informal meetings and emails, the husband uncovers the truth about his wife's affair, and in a stunning denouement, reveals the truth about his wife to her unsuspecting lover.
The Other Man, based on a short story by Bernhard Schlink (THE READER), was written and directed by Richard Eyre (NOTES ON A SCANDAL, IRIS) along with co-writer Charles Wood (IRIS). The producers on the film include Frank Doelger (JOHN ADAMS, MY HOUSE IN UMBRIA, THE GATHERING STORM), Tracey Scoffield, Michael Dreyer (NINE, STARDUST, FINDING NEVERLAND), Mary Beth O'Connor and David Richenthal (TAPE) with original music by Stephen Warbeck (SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, VANILLA GORILLA, SKELLIG)
--© Image Entertainment
Starring: Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas, Laura Linney, Romola Garai
Starring: Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas, Laura Linney, Romola Garai, Craig Parkinson
Director: Richard Eyre
Director: Richard Eyre
Screenwriter: Richard Eyre, Charles Wood
Story: Bernhard Schlink
Composer: Stephen Warbeck
Studio: Image Entertainment, Inc.
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Reviews for The Other Man
The result is B-grade cheese. The only genuine mystery, for me, is why such a fine cast signed on for such a witless movie.
As the pathetic, decent lothario, Banderas lacks sexual threat just as the script’s various miscommunications lack Pinter menace. Neeson is too rough-hewn for the conflicted cuckold.
A contrived, poorly crafted, sophomoric and bland thriller that can't even be saved by its stellar cast.
If you like being manipulated by top-notch actors, you'll have a blast here. Otherwise you might lose your patience. I didn't.
Strangely inhospitable, perhaps better appreciated three margaritas into a Sunday afternoon Lifetime film festival than a critical Friday night rental.
It was directed by British theater director Richard Eyre, who knows how to line up the shots but not how to make us feel the compulsive hunger that drives Peter to the brink of a very tidy, stiff-upper-lip breakdown.
The screen version of Bernhard Schlink's short story The Other Man does not deliver. The secret at the heart of the film, after all the fractured narrative convolutions, is anti-climactic, and the conclusion is strained and awkward.
Stagy to a fault, and painfully uneventful, "The Other Man" suffocates from the pitiable writing at hand.
While we wait for the inevitable showdown, the film treats us to several surprising plot twists, but shock value can’t distract from the fact that Eyre and his actors are fighting a losing battle.
...pretty much cements Richard Eyre's status as a high-brow purveyor of trashy fare...
It hurts to see a terrific cast (including the lovely and intelligent young Irish actress Romola Garai as the couple's quietly seething daughter) squandered on such dreary filmmaking.
Good actors (including Liam Neeson and Laura Linney) are wasted in Eyre's new film, which is neither effective as anatomy of a troubled marriage nor satisfying as a Hitchcockian thriller about a missing wife.
An oddly affecting drama offers much food for thought on the after-effects of adultery and the toxin that can wither our soul when we are overtaken by jealousy.
Can you believe that a guy who once played Oskar Schindler and a woman who was Abigail Adams can go slumming in a less-than-appealing soap?
Its plotting leans more toward silly, soap opera-ish machinations, and while Banderas is as charming as ever, there are a couple of crucial bits of miscasting.
Latest News for The Other Man
September 10, 2009:
Critics Consensus: 9 Looks Great, But The Plot's Weak
This week at the movies, we've got post-apocalyptic conflict (9, with voice work by Elijah Wood and Jennifer Connelly); Antarctic intrigue (Whiteout, starring Kate Beckinsale... More...
July 31, 2009:
Trailer Bulletin: The Other Man ![]()
Why does Liam Neeson want to kill Antonio Banderas? Find out by watching the trailer for "The Other Man." More...
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