"Bel Canto" ** (out of ****)
Don't underestimate the power of music. Music has the ability to transcend political, economic, and social differences. It is an universal language. Have you ever been to a classical music concert? If you look around you will see a wide variety of people. Different cultures, races and ages. People from all different backgrounds join together in the name of good music.
There is great social and political injustice in the world. Countries with massive amounts of wealth also have some of the highest levels of poverty. Those left behind by their government and economic systems demand change. They will not remain "the forgotten".
What do these two ideas have to do with one another? They are awkwardly combined in "Bel Canto" (2018), the film adaptation of Ann Patchett's 2001 novel, based on a real-life hostage crisis that occurred in Lima, Peru in 1996. The novel was later adapted into an opera in 2015.
It is obvious what "Bel Canto" hopes to achieve by presenting this story, with an international cast, confined to a single location. We are led to believe this is a story of characters from different walks of life, all forced to come together to ultimately realize we are all the same. Given the current political climate it is an admirable message but good intentions are not enough to make a successful film.
Directed and co-written by the versatile Paul Weitz ("American Pie", "About a Boy") "Bel Canto" never fleshes out its characters, resulting in viewers never being truly emotionally invested. The movie doesn't tackle anything we haven't already seen in similar movies. It all begins to feel formulaic and by the numbers.
Julianne Moore, one of the great actresses of our time, stars as Roxane Coss, a famous opera singer, invited to perform at a private party in honor of Katsumi Hosokawa (Ken Watanable). He adores Roxane and her presence is meant to lure Hosokawa to build a factory in our unnamed South American country. The gathering is given an unexpected twist when a group of radical activist, in an assassination attempt, break into the party, looking for the country's president, who decided against attending.
The radicals demand the release of all political prisoners as they hold the guest hostage while negotiations with a Red Cross representative (Sebastian Koch) ensue.
During this time relationships form between the hostages and their captors and between the hostages themselves. Giving audiences some kum by yah moments, which the screenplay doesn't earn.
"Bel Canto", while filled with nice performances, lacks in execution. For a movie about the power of music, it feels flat.
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