The Woman In The Fifth Movie Review

The Woman in the Fifth is a suspense drama written and directed by Pawel Pawlikowski. This film is based on the novel of the same name by Douglas Kennedy. Caroline Benjo and Carole Scotta have co-produced this film. This film is distributed under the banner of Memento Films. Ryszard Lenczewski is the cinematographer, while David Charap is the editor of this film. This film stars Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke is a Hollywood actor, director, >> Read More... and Kristin Scott Thomas in the lead. The supporting cast of this film includes Joanna Kulig, Samir Guesmi, Marcella Iacub, etc. The film got a theatrical release on 17 February 2012.  

Plot

American novelist Tom Ricks arrives in Paris. He wants to start afresh with his estranged wife, and his young daughter. He is attracted to the Polish barmaid of his hostel, as well as a mysterious lady, Margit. Who will Tom choose? 

Star Performances 

The film is visually appealing and charming, and cinematographer Ryszard Lenczewski has done a fair job in this regard. 

The acting performances of Ethan Hawke and Kristin Scott Thomas are the other two reasons why this film is at least watchable. 

Analysis 

There have been several movies, that blur the fine line between illusion and reality. ‘The Sixth Sense,’ ‘Jacob’s Ladder,’ ‘ Passengers Click to look into! >> Read More... ,’ etc. are some examples in this regard. However, it seems that the writer cum director Pawel Pawlikowski is utterly confused about his choice to oscillate between fantasy and reality. 

As a result, ‘The Woman in the Fifth’ becomes a rather muddled product, unsure of which path to move forward. At one moment, it looks like a slick crime thriller. In other instances, it transitions to erotica. On some occasions, this has shades of some supernatural force at play. Yet, there is no proper conclusion to either. The open ending is not something many would look forward to, especially with a confused narrative like this. 

Now that is not something bad or even disturbing. The problem arises when the narrative does not manage to intrigue the viewer. In such a case, the confused vision of Pawel Pawlikowski only adds to the trouble of the audience, often testing their patience. The multiple languages only complicate the matter further.

Visually, the movie is far from being unimpressive. At least, the cinematographer can pat his back for that. Ethan Hawke and Kristin Scott Thomas do their best to make this film engaging. Though Ethan does not speak the perfect French, given the origin of his character, he has still done an impressive job. This duo is one of the few reasons why this film is at least watchable, if not perfect. 

What's There?

• Only the performances of Kristin Scott Thomas and Ethan Hawke 

• Decent camerawork by cinematographer Ryszard Lenczewski

What's Not There? 

• Utterly confused narrative 

• No attempt to evoke curiosity amongst the audience 

• Clunky editing 

Verdict 

'The Woman in the Fifth’ is a movie that could have been a brilliant masterpiece. However, director Pawel Pawlikowski remained confused and misguided. The lead pair of Ethan Hawke and Kristin Scott Thomas did their best to make this film look coherent.