Tulip Fever (2017)

The visuals and the feel of the setting was pleasing, but i wasn't taken at all with the acting and some aspects of the story were too heavy-handed. it is compulsively entertaining and fun to watch, but nothing more than that: no complex dialogues, no layered characters, no subtexts. it shoots for an epics but ultimately succeeds only in being a mediocre adaptation of a mediocre hist-fic novel, which i do recommend for a bit of mindless fun; just make sure to turn your critic button off in advance.

Filmed way back in 2014, to say that the background of Tulip Fever is one of much change and concerning history is an understatement and upon evaluation of the final product, it seems as though this is one particular period drama that would've done well to sit out its life on the shelf of what could've been.At one stage or another a project that had John Madden attached as a director, Steven Spielberg on as producer and stars Jude Law and Keira Knightly lined up to be in front of the camera, director Justin Chadwick's adaptation of Deborah Moggach's novel of the same name is a rather cold and flavourless experience that is supposed to throw us headfirst into Alicia Vikander's Sophia Sandvoort's whirlwind romance with Dane DeHaan's budding painter Jan van Loos in the face of a cold marriage to Christoph Waltz's exporting merchant Cornelis Sandvoort in Amsterdam of the 17th century but instead throws us into a drama by the numbers narrative that lacks any true passion or pulsating heart.It's not like Tulip Fever doesn't have the potential and the star power to make it succeed, at its core being it has a story that should've and could've been something to get emotionally invested into but Chadwick's lacklustre directing and poor script work by screenwriters Tom Stoppard and Deborah Moggach weigh the film down to a point where it all seems rather frivolous and pointless and we begin to wonder why we should care about anything at all within this dull and dry experience.There's no real commitment in the film, no real passion, not even actors of Vikander's and Walt'z skill can make things ramp up a notch despite their best efforts while supports are mixed with De Haan as lifeless as his ever been, like his wondered in from a long night out at the bar, while other notable performers like Jack O'Connell and Cara Delevingne barely get a chance to do anything in their minimal roles, ditto for Dame Judi Dench and the pointless addition of usual funny man Zach Galifianakis.The other huge problem with Tulip Fever is the fact that with Vikander's Sophia cheating and manipulating her husband such a core component of the film, it's hard to get on board with her plot as Cornelius is a rather genuine man, his not an evil or nasty man, rather one that wants the best for his wife and his hoped for family, making much of Fever's key developments hard to agree with.Final Say - With brief, fleeting moments of what could've been, Tulip Fever isn't irredeemably bad but Chadwick's efforts to transport us to a time and place we end up caring deeply about leave a lot to be desired. Considering the cast at its disposal, Tulip Fever's end product is a deeply disappointing outcome.2 little soldier's out of 5

If only this were actually about the tulip trade that still fascinates economists as well as tulip growers alike. This could have been a very interesting, informative and cleverly written story, but alas it was like watching a more drunken and sexualized tale of "Girl with a Pearl Earring" with more fish and tulips than bratty 9 year olds. Now, could someone please tell a GOOD story about the TULIPS, please?

An artist falls for a young married woman while he's commissioned to paint her portrait during the Tulip mania of 17th century Amsterdam. Tulip Fever took 3 years to be relased and it makes sense to be honest, the dialogue is cliched and horrendous, the characters are bland and boring and the overall romance is terrible plus there was more sex than actual storytelling as well. Also DeHaanand Vikander feel miscasted and have zero chemistry together as for other great actors like Dench or even Supergirl's David Harewood feel out of place. Overall this movie gets a no recommendation from me. (0/10)