_Felicia's_Journey_ (PG-13) *** 1/2 (out of ****)
Every year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences always seems to go out of its way to ignore some of the most extraordinary acting performances of the year. Likely to earn the dubious distinction of a snub is Bob Hoskins, who pulls off one of the year's most remarkable acting feats in writer-director Atom Egoyan's adaptation of William Trevor's novel. Like all of Egoyan's work, the unfolds like a mystery, so I'll keep plot details to their barest minimum. The Felicia of the title (Elaine Cassidy) is a naive Irish teen who travels to England to find the lost lover who left her pregnant. Whom she ends up finding instead--or vice versa-- Joseph Hilditch (Hoskins), a gentle catering manager who offers his help in her search.
As Egoyan employs his usual technique of travelling back and forth through time, some secrets about Hilditch's past and present surface, and the relationship between Felicia and Hilditch is in a constant state of flux--but no moreso than than their individual sense of identity. Cassidy is a natural and likable actress, and she makes for an easily sympathetic audience surrogate. Although her character figures into the title, the key journey of the film is that of the tormented Hilditch, and Hoskins does an astonishing job in bringing this very complex character to life. It's impossible to adequately describe the difficulty of his acting task without divulging critical plot information, but suffice it to say that Hoskins pulls it off without a hitch. The film doesn't pack the forceful emotional wallop of Egoyan's last effort, the Oscar-nominated _The_Sweet_Hereafter_, but _Felicia's_Journey_ is a deeply haunting film that only grows moreso upon reflection.
Michael Dequina twotrey@juno.com | michael_jordan@geocities.com | jordan_host@sportsmail.com | mrbrown@iname.com Mr. Brown's Movie Site: http://welcome.to/mrbrown CinemaReview Magazine: http://www.CinemaReview.com on ICQ: #25289934 | on AOL Instant Messenger: MrBrown23
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