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Critics Consensus: The latest iteration of The Seagull does little to distinguish itself from other Chekhov adaptations but provides a pleasing showcase for its sterling cast.
Critic Consensus: The latest iteration of The Seagull does little to distinguish itself from other Chekhov adaptations but provides a pleasing showcase for its sterling cast.
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All Critics (112) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (77) | Rotten (35)
As entertaining and as lovingly crafted as it is, it fails to transcend.
Mayer brings a labored hand to the proceedings and can't maximize his dynamite cast or the potential for salaciousness in Chekov's tangled web of characters.
Chekhov would be appalled.
At times you feel like you're watching bits and pieces of two or three different films. Happily, they're all pretty good ones.
A story full of passion and longing and rage and betrayal that comes across as abstract verging on bloodless.
Great, thoughtful acting can take you only so far, and "The Seagull" has been brought into close-up without ever coming into focus.
This is the rare play adaptation that is able to cast off its stage shackles.
The impressive cast manages to convey the subtleties and nuances of their roles, it's beautifully shot and there's a lively pace throughout.
The English-speaking cast gives the film a contemporary feel while Mayer uses the camera fluidly to avoid the perception that you're watching a play. This is by far the best cinematic adaptation to date.
Take away the boredom, melancholy and frustration, and you have a more fluent movie but a less faithful representation of the writer's world.
If The Seagull sounds like it would make a much better play than a film then you would be correct.
The trifecta of brilliant women leads (Bening, Moss and Ronan), all doing a superb job, somehow doesn't quite alleviate the feeling that we are not going deep enough.
The cast is good, but this is just further proof that Chekhov belongs on the stage. Also, there are some weird structural choices that undermine the play's natural tension.
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