Writer: Akiva Goldsman (Screenplay) Mark Helprin (Novel)
Starring: Colin Farrell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Russell Crowe, William Hurt, Jennifer Connelly
Plot: A burglar falls for an heiress as she dies in his arms. When he learns that he has the gift of reincarnation, he sets out to save her.
Tagline – This is not a true story. This is true love.
Runtime: 1 Hour 58 Minutes
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Nice Fantasy Romance
Story: A New York Winter’s Tale starts as we meet Peter Lake (Farrell) left an orphan in New York City to become one of the most notorious thieves in the city, working for Pearly (Crowe) their business agreement goes south and now he is after Peter, who is saved by a mysterious magical horse.
Needing to get out of town, the horse guides him to the sick Beverly Penn (Findlay) who changes his views on life, until he learns of his own powers that shine through in this world where fairy-tales are only on the surface.
Thoughts on A New York Winter’s Tale
Characters – Peter Lake is nothing more than a thief working in New York City, when he goes against the plans of his boss he becomes a wanted man on the run with only a mythical horse to guide him, this shows him the light and the power his possesses as he walks the world as an empty sole. Beverly Penn is an heiress that is going to be dying within the next year or so, she opens Peter’s heart to be the one thing he never thought he could steal, it is her that shows him where his life might go. Pearly is the man trying to stop any miracles happening in the world, part demon he controls the ability to have miracles happening with his gangster like persona.
Performances – Colin Farrell is good in this leading role, at it shows he can handle a role that isn’t in the stranger roles like he has headed towards in recent years. Jessica Brown Findlay is the least known of the big roles in this film and she is great opposite Farrell. Russell Crowe does make for great villain which is what we always like to see. We do have a great supporting cast performing that do work for the main roles.
Story – The story gives us a blend of fairy tale ideas in a growing world, this is an interesting story of enteral love, meaning and placement on the Earth, which is something people can find themselves asking, their place in this world. This will give the romantic fans a happy story that will play on nearly every emotion and is one that does give you a feel good moment or two through the film.
Fantasy/Mystery/Romance – The use of the fantasy in the growing world gives us hope that things could happen that surprise us, which is where the mystery comes from as we see where Peter ends up because of the love he once felt.
Settings – The New York setting is used to show us that miracles could happen even in the biggest city in the world.
Special Effects – The effects through the film are good without being overly used, even though certain moments do feel green screen heavy.
Scene of the Movie – The miracle.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – While I think Russell Crowe is good in this film his accent seems to bounce around a lot.
Final Thoughts – This is a good, feel good movies that will leave you with a smile, hope and enjoyment by the end of the film.
Overall: Fantasy feel good.
Rating