Rent A Long Way from Home (2013)

Only view if you have nothing better to do - A Long Way from Home review by TB

Which is an awful title for peoples hard work, I know, but the location, south-east France, with its architecture, light, landscapes, etc, etc is delightful, wonderful. Unfortunately for me the films - great length of 79 minutes - two main characters did not have much character. James Fox, the leading man, does not say much, nor his wife Brenda Fricker whom retire to France, but because of this and the film has no flash backs, the script does not give the two main characters any depth which allows the film to plod along as a plot which I struggled with. When the James Fox character is in the doctor surgery, it is referred he was on anti-depressant, but apart from just one line, there is no other referral as to why his character should be so flat.

Thankfully the film comes partly alive with the introduction of Natalie Dormers character, whom is on holiday for a week with her boyfriend, which as she is young and with lovely natural smiles, James Fox is drawn to. But being the character he is, and old enough to be her grandfather, the film does not venture into an intimate affair, just a simple attraction over that week.

In a way, I was glad it finished but saddened that with such a wonderful location and such a common idea of English folk retiring south, that with a better script and cast, the film could have been enjoyed.