Robert Redford has done it again. What has he done you may ask? Well, he’s created yet another long, drawn-out, overly dramatic, dull feature film. The name of this abomination? The Legend Of Bagger Vance.
First off, it’s hard to tell exactly who this film is about. The title suggests Bagger Vance, played by Will Smith, but the story leads us to believe it’s more about a washed-up golfer, Rannulph Junuh (Matt Damon), or an influenced young boy, Hardy (L. Michael Moncrief). Without a main character or substantial plot, this movie falls apart before it even gets remotely close to a point. Trying to explain the complexity of it all is a waste of time, not just mine, but yours as well.
Bagger Vance is still a mystery to me. I’m not sure if he was supposed to be some symbol of determination, or the actual angel of golf. Smith plays the character straight, which is a nice change from his more comedic persona. Though his delivery is precise and at times appealing, he’s still a long way from praise. I guess the simplest way to explain it is boring.
Redford is back to his same old tricks with overly dramatic weather interludes, exaggerated expressions, and characters that are oozing with sentimentality. The dialogue goes around in circles and it’s hard to tell which character would be next to tug on the heartstrings. All the psycho-babble poetry was more than enough to make me want to puke, and to top it off, at times the music was so hypnotic it almost put me to sleep.
About the only positive thing that lies in this crummy piece of cinema is Matt Damon. Even though he’s miles away from his Good Will Hunting days, he’s still a remarkable screen presence. After all, it’s not his fault the script is poor and the other actors can’t carry their weight. Charlize Theron, for one, is utterly annoying as Southern belle Adele; and Moncrief, though he has the most adorable big eyes, also has the most stiff line delivery of any childhood actor to date.
All in all, The Legend Of Bagger Vance is so incredibly uninteresting, I would rather watch twenty-four hours of amateur golf.
+ ashley adams
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