Grade: A
Anthony Minghella (Oscar winner for The English Patient in 1997, and writing nominee for The Talented Mr. Ripley in 1999) makes it three for three in terms of critical success. Cold Mountain is one of the most highly anticipated films of the year, and it is well worth the wait. Jude Law plays Inman, a southern civil war infantryman who deserts the war to return home to Cold Mountain and his love Ada (played by Nicole Kidman), and the film chronicles Ada’s struggles at the home front, and Inman’s difficult journey. Minghella scores double with his fantastic script which is both powerful and yet understated, and his deft direction. Yet the real story is the performances of Jude Law and Nicole Kidman, who shine as lovers torn apart by war and the struggles they endure to one year reunite. Renee Zellweger costars as Ruby, a brash country-girl who helps Ada. Her interpretation of the character is brash at first, but near the end, Ruby (and Zellweger’s performance) is as endearing as everything else in this wonderful film.
© 2003 Jacob Sproul
December 2003 Archive
2003 Archive
Main Archive