hyped garbage

Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

Boring

A lot of fun.

Perfect costuming and set decor. Alan Rickman is splendid and Rebecca Hall has won me over. But. The camera-work is negatively strange and distracting at times. The sudden zoom ins and (tragically trendy) shaky cam, not my cup of tea. I wish my remote control had a stabilizer button.

Usually, when there is a love story involving one woman and two man, it's always the same content : it's about cheating, infidelity ; there is a lot of graphic sex scenes or at least erotic moments ; it always ends in violence as the deceived man seeks revenge ! Here nothing like that happens and i could have written this story as it's exactly my feelings and what would be my attitude in such a situation : sure it's « bad » to love two persons at the same time, all the more if you are already engaged to one but as passion is unexpected, it would be stupid to say that it can't happen. However, if as humans, we can't control her feelings, at least, we are accountable for our actions : so if we have promised to love and support the spouse, we are committed to our words and we can't fulfill our passion with number two as long as number one is alive. Thus, the only solution for those lovers is to wait that number one either goes away either dies and this is what this movie actually depicts ! no kiss, no foreplay, no sex, thus no infidelity as long as « Severus Snape » is alive. Rebecca has to wait patiently, without losing hope because fate with World War I keeps delaying her new life ! It's all the more difficult as it was the start of the XXth century so manners and lifestyle were really strict : A bit like the Victorians English, everything related to desire was bottled up (clothes, arts, …) so even the more trivial situations were like sublimation for this forbidden passion ! The movie is really excellent to depict their reality and the cast is really wonderful : The sadly late « Snape » was always cool portraying ambivalent guy who speaks little but knows much ; Rebecca delivers one of her best work as she has indeed this kind of passion and fragility and for sure righteousness. In addition, as she is really beautiful for my eyes, i can plunge easily into each of her movies that put her as the desired woman. Sure, a lot of scenes drags a bit, the setting is a bit dark, strict but having our french famous director staged for English cast such a beautiful love story in Germany was really unexpected and totally captivating !

"A Promise" is a film that I had a very hard time enjoying. While it has some lovely cinematography and some amazingly pretty scenes of pre- World War One Germany, the story itself is amazingly sterile and bereft of energy. When the story begins, Friedrich (Richard Madden) is an amazingly capable and efficient assistant. Over time, he becomes invaluable to the boss, Herr Hoffmeister (Alan Rickman) and is his trusted aid. So, when Hoffmeister becomes ill and cannot remain on the job, he invites Friedrick to come to his home and relay his instructions to the factory. So, each day Friedrich shuttles back and forth from work to the Hoffmeister home--where he slowly begins to notice the boss' wife, Lotte Hoffmeister (Rebecca Hall). She is significantly younger than her husband and over time, she and Friedrich become more and more friendly and eventually he becomes almost like a member of the family--taking the young son and his mother on various outings. So, it's not surprising that Friedrich develops feelings for her...and then her husband sends Friedrich to be the company's liaison in Mexico. What's to become of their relationship? And, more importantly, does the audience even care?!As I sat and watched this film, several things struck me. The entire project was very, very lifeless. Throughout EVERYTHING, Friedrich and the boss' wife showed almost no energy and there was really almost no chemistry between them. They eventually SAID they loved each other but you wonder where this came from. As for him, you can tell he's obsessed as he spends his time sniffing where the Missus had been (THIS IS SO CREEPY). But with her, you really have no idea she reciprocates the feelings during so much of the movie because she is so incredibly restrained...too restrained. For the most part, the film is about repressed feelings and you almost never see them expressed. Had you LIKED the characters, this pain would have actually made the film quite intriguing. But, because it's very difficult to care about them, the film is so very, very dull. In essence, the film lacked romance--which is BAD because it's supposed to be a romance!I should add to this that MUCH of the film occurs during WWI and the film barely even mentions it (like it's a minor inconvenience that gets in the way of their love) and you are left baffled at so much of the film. Most baffling is the pair FINALLY meet long after the war is over...and their conversation is stilted and ultra-bizarre. I call it a case of poorly written and difficult to believe dialog and you just have to hear it to believe it. Overall, other than the lovely costumes, sets, music and cinematography, I cannot find much about "A Promise" that would get me to recommend it.By the way, the DVD for this film follows an annoying new trend. You cannot easily play the film but must slog through many promos for other films, as the MENU feature and SKIP buttons are disabled. You can use the FAST FORWARD keys but must hit them repeatedly to skip past each ad.

It is probably a matter of personal taste when watching a story of forbidden love as to how it is portrayed. There have been many that have gone before "A Promise" that have moved readers and audiences alike. Frankly, it's old tale of elderly man, young wife, and introduction of handsome contender who falls for the forbidden fruit. As much as I like Alan Rickman, I found this movie to be a slow-moving tale lacking the passion I hoped to encounter.Alan plays the elderly owner of a foundry, Karl Hoffmeister, with an ailing heart. Enters Friedrich Zeitz, who he takes under his wing as his protégé. It's apparent from the beginning he is grooming the young, intelligent man to take over his business. Early in their relationship, he discloses the secret that he is not well.As he methodically allows the young handsome Friedrich to enter his home and take up residence, you gain the sense that he has purposely brought him close to his wife to encourage something more. Perhaps, it is the love of an older, dying man for his young wife to make sure her needs are met after his demise. Little did he know, that having done so, he finds himself brokenhearted over the outcome when she falls in love with Friedrich.Rebecca Hall plays the proper wife, though slightly dull. Richard Madden plays the protégé, who is immediately attracted to Heir Hoffmeister's wife. He turns into a sappy, slightly obsessive worshiper of young Charlotte. In one scene he smells her scent and kisses the keys of the piano that she has played, as if he's making love to it. Of course, that is countered later in the movie with Charlotte sniffing the pillow of his empty bed.The two are thrown together due to Heir Hoffmeister's ill health attending the opera and other activities. It's a silent game between the two, as they both play with fire, but fail to acknowledge their feelings for one another for some time. It's not until Hoffmeister reaches the stage of jealousy, that he sends off his rival to Mexico on business for two years. Then, the floodgates of words of undying love burst forth between the two, as well as the "promise" to wait for one another.The movie is set in pre-WWI Germany. When war ensues, it keeps them apart far longer than either anticipated. After the death of her husband, and many years of receiving no word, Friedrich returns after the war. Charlotte who has been sorrowfully smitten and pining for her sweetheart meets him once again. Instead of the passionate reunion you anticipate, it turns into a polite cup of tea like two friends making up for lost time. He is aloof and cold, she is polite and proper. In fact, he confesses he's not married but has been with other women. She fluffs it off as inconsequential. It's not until the end scene they finally kiss. Where's the tears? Where's the passion? Where is the joy of seeing one another again? Obviously, six years has cooled them off. It's an odd, emotionless reunion.The more I think about why this movie doesn't have the effect is should, is that the two main characters, Charlotte and Friedrich, never really take the viewers to the point of falling in love with them. Friedrich is sullen, moody, and intense. He surely didn't make me want to swoon and commit adultery. Charlotte's character, though quite innocent in the beginning, doesn't really portray why she is so unhappy with her husband that she should be tempted to stray. Because I never bonded with the characters, except for Herr Hoffmeister, it wasn't an exciting, moving, heart-throbbing love story that made me want to see the two live happily ever after. Even though it is based off a novel written by Stefan Zweig's "Journey into the Past," it comes across as a worn-out plot that is missing important elements of passion to make it memorable.Of course, I love period movies, whether excellent or mediocre. Though for me this was more mediocre, you may find it your cup of tea.