The Song of Names

A payoff is coming - you know it from the film's opening credits, or its poster - but it takes so long to reveal itself that when it does, it can't help but feel anticlimactic.

Far from heightening the sense of mystery, the flashback construction renders the present-day dramatically inert, giving fine actors little to do save deliver exposition.

There's a mystery at the heart of "The Song of Names," but it isn't much of a mystery, and once it's solved, the movie loses what little interest it has.

Is a mediocre film worth seeing for a single magnificent sequence that only works properly in context? Here's the test case.

Literate, sober, soulful.

The movie never quite justifies the contrivance of its puzzle-box construction. Parlaying this material into an arty whodunit cheapens the real history invoked.

... A film adaptation that takes the scenes from the pages of the book, but loses their emotion. [Full review in Spanish]

A handsome, yet somewhat dreary historical drama that does not hit the emotional notes it needs to succeed.

If you understand these roots, or even simply resonate with them, then you will be more likely to be able to fill in the gaps left by Caine's script.

Throw in some dubious Polish accents, plus stiff performances all-around, and the film doesn't achieve the gravity the subject matter demands.