#MovieMonday: Fallen (2017)


*Movie Monday* is where I will share my thoughts on a movie I have seen in the past week. Please note that I am NOT a movie reviewer. I  will "review" a movie like I would a book. Just telling you how I feel about the movie. I hope you enjoy.
*I take NO credit for the title, as after I searched it I noticed it was already taken.
 
Movie: Fallen
Cert: 12
Studio: Lionsgate
Release: 10th March 2017 (UK)
Genre:  Teen, Drama, Fantasy
Directors: Scott Hicks
WritersMichael Arlen Ross (screenplay), Kathryn Price (screenplay) | 2 more credits »
My Rating: 3 out of 5

About The Movie:
When Luce (Addison Timlin; That Awkward Moment) is sent to Sword & Cross reform school, accused of a crime she didn’t commit, she finds herself torn between two students; dangerous Cameron and mysterious Daniel (Jeremy Irvine; War Horse). Tormented by strange visions, Luce begins to unravel the secrets of her past and finds she must choose where her feelings lie, pitting Heaven against Hell in an epic battle over true love. - Amazon UK




Having read the book, Fallen had the potential to an epic movie. Fallen Angels. A love that transcends a thousand years. One girls struggle between two hotties. A battle between good and bad and one hell of a Gothic setting. Yet in the process of adapting this from paper to screen just falls flat. It just didn’t work which is so disappointing because I really enjoyed the first book in the series.

I remember when I first heard this was getting a movie (and we are going years back) I was soooooo excited because I loved the book. Then when information starting being released about the casting, I can honestly say I was not that impressed. Then when I watched the movie. It did not help me changed my mind much. Mainly for the casting of Luce and Cam. I was Team Cam in the books. I loved him. He had the ultimate bad boy appeal. "Bad" Fallen Angel. Full of charm. He was a fantastic character. And to me actor was way off. He couldn't pull off the Cam Charm. Luce, oh dear god. She may not have been my perfect Luce in looks (I always picture Kaya Scodelario as Luce) but I could have overlooked that if her acting was fantastic. And I am sorry but dear god she was a bore feast. I am sure that Addison is wonderful actress, I haven't seen anything else she is in. However, her portrayal of Luce is awful. Her acting was so flat. There was no emotional at all in her. No passion, no energy. Very lacklustre. I will say though I loved that they got the dress into the movie and she rocked it. She is a stunning girl and can totally pull off that look.

Now I wasn't completely upset about all of the casting. Jeremy as Daniel is actually pretty spot on looks wise. He was nice to looks at and got that smoldering thing going on. I think he did a good job with bringing Daniel to screen. However, I think he could have really stepped up on the nastiness. As in the books he was a bit of an arse to Luce.

I know that you are never going to get a perfect book to movie adaptation. Even my favourites have some major changes, e.g. Harry Potter and Twilight. However, I still expect some of the most important details and scenes to be kept in. And sadly it had just way too many mistake and BIG mistakes for me to really enjoy it. Yet, I think if you haven't read the book you might actually enjoy it more. Once I managed separated the two it wasn't overly terrible. It wasn't the worst movie I have ever seen. But it was a far cry from being great. And don't get me started on the pace. It was soooooo goddamn slow. It wasn't until the last 20 minutes that we got any sort of "excitement" and even then it was still pretty meh compared to the ending of the book. 


It wasn't all bad. Let me just take a moment to drool over the setting. The thing I loved most about the book was the setting. It is Gothic and dark and I loved it. The movie really managed to captured that. And I really want to go to Tura, Hungary to see this place close up. Swords & Cross was everything I imagine it would be. So hats off to those film crew and who ever decided on the where this movie was going to the film.  I also want to applaud the cinematographer. The way this film was shot really brought the Gothic feel alive. It was mesmerising and breath-taking. For me this saved the movie and brought my overall rating up to a 3. If they had messed up setting and overall feel of the movie it would have been a complete disaster.


Overall, Fallen was a sort of watchable movie. It was far from amazing. Personally, I think too many YA book to movie adaptations are falling because they all are trying to get that Twilight and Hunger Games success. Unfortunately, Fallen is one of many that have failed. Given more time and a bigger budget, Fallen could have been amazing!!!! It really could have. If they dedicated more time to making sure the actors acting was spot on, they could have been forgiven for changing a lot of the book if they still had the original spirit of the characters.


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