An Unfinished Life (2005)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 107 minuten
Country:
United States / Germany
Directed by: Lasse Hallström
Stars: Jennifer Lopez, Robert Redford and Morgan Freeman
IMDb score:
7,0 (36.649)
Releasedate: 9 September 2005
An Unfinished Life plot
"Every secret takes on a life of its own."
Einar Gilkyson (Robert Redford) is an old, embittered rancher who has let himself and his ranch deteriorate after the death of his son ten years ago. The only thing Einar spends time and energy on is his best friend Mitch (Morgan Freeman), who became disabled after an encounter with a bear. One day Jean (Jennifer Lopez), Einar's daughter-in-law, shows up on his doorstep. The relationship between the two is seriously disrupted, as Einar blames Jean for the death of his son. Jean has fled from her aggressive boyfriend. She has her daughter Griff with her, who has never seen her grandfather. The contact with his granddaughter, who is looking for a father figure and has a great interest in ranch life, has given Einar some pleasure in life for a long time. His attitude towards Jean also improves. But then her possessive boyfriend shows up.
Actors and actresses
Einar Gilkyson
Jean Gilkyson
Mitch Bradley
Griff Gilkyson
Crane Curtis
Gary Winston
Nina
Kitty
Deputy
Shelter Supervisor
Reviews & comments
BBarbie
-
- 12893 messages
- 7675 votes
Story about character differences and the (in)ability to forgive and forget the past. Excellent acting from a fine cast, especially Morgan Freeman (as always really). That and the beautiful shots of the environment make this a fascinating film.
Translated from Dutch · View original
sinterklaas
-
- 11837 messages
- 3328 votes
After My Life as a Dog and What's eating Gilbert Grape I threw myself into the work of Lasse Hallström... and there is still plenty to discover.
Here he sketches a fine, rippling psychological drama, in which the atmospheric rural locations are the calling card. The acting is also really excellent. I haven't seen much of Robert Redford yet, but he plays a fine role here as the bitterly resentful Einar... who owns a ranch and daily cares for his friend Mitch, who is beautifully played here by Morgan Freeman. The man can always be there. He became disabled after being attacked by a bear. The bear is also used as a nice metaphor in the rest of the film. Meanwhile, we also have Jean who is on the run with her daughter from her abusive boyfriend Gary and ends up with father-in-law Einar. The latter is not happy with her arrival because he blames her for the death of his son (Jean's former husband).
This produces a quite strong and sensitive film in which there is often distraction between the melancholy; the bear, the scenes with Mitch, that sheriff, the sweet Griff... Hällstrom knows how to stay creative in this. It is also inevitable that one day Gary will be located in the village.
The film manages to keep alive and moving on all fronts and the lively atmosphere in the village is the icing on the cake.
4.0*
Translated from Dutch · View original
Sergio Leone
-
- 4500 messages
- 3181 votes
Right.
Robert Redford can put down a gruff grumble in this corny Sunday drama. It's all very small, judging by the obvious choices in just about every area: from the predictable granddaughter-grandfather relationship to the casting of Morgan Freeman.
Lasse Hallström also shoots some nice pictures of the beautiful location, but can't do much more than that. The best man apparently likes the feel-good sentiment, which has already resulted in good films, but it's all too plastic for me here.
2
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