The Forgotten Review

by Harvey S. Karten (harveycritic AT cs DOT com)
September 27th, 2004

THE FORGOTTEN

Reviewed by Harvey S. Karten
Revolution Studios/Columbia Pictures
Grade: C
Directed by: Joseph Ruben
Written by: Gerald Di Pego
Cast: Julianne Moore, Dominic West, Gary Sinise, Alfre Woodard, Linus Roache, Anthony Edwards
Screened at: Loews 34th St., NYC, 9/26/04

In his review of "The Forgotten" Roger Ebert states, "Who would make a movie about a mother discovering her beloved child was imaginary? That would be too sad, too tragic." Roger forgets Mike Nichols' filmed version of Edward Albee's play, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," in which Liz Taylor's character, Martha, imagines a son that never existed.

In Joseph Ruben's "The Forgotten," Julianne Moore performs in the role of a woman who has vivid memories of her small son, Sam, who died in the crash of a private plane. Like most other mothers suddenly faced with the death of a young one, Telly Paretta (Julianne Moore), a book editor, grieves, but imagine her frustration when her psychiatrist, Dr. Munch (Gary Sinise) and her husband, Jim (Anthony Edwards), insist that there never was a Sam!

With this background, "The Forgotten" could be a picture about how a mother's long-term mourning leads to an ultimate acceptance of tragedy, or it could be one, like "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," that features a woman who cannot reconcile herself to the fact that she never had any children. Instead Ruben, utilizing Gerald Di Pego's script which has been called a psychological thriller, takes a third route, suggesting that an alien abduction may have been involved, one which has been furthered, rather than resisted, by Telly's husband, shrink, and a special agent for the National Space Administration. What makes the picture preposterous, rather than simply the sort of weepy drama that discloses facts and understandings step by step like the slow piecing together of a crossword puzzle, is that the answer to the enigma comes at the end. What's more, about two-thirds into the film, some residents, particularly a friendly man (Linus Roache), turn into people who are not the usual run-of-the-mill characters with credible back stories–a shock similar to the one provided by M. Night Shyamalan in "The Village" yet one which, unlike that pic, has no rational explanation.

Until the scenario changes about an hour into the story, "The Forgotten" merits plaudits. How to explain the family picture that included Telly, her husband, and her boy Sam wherein Sam suddenly disappears from the frame? And how could an entire book suddenly yield nothing but blank pages? And how about the wall surrounding the home of Telly's neighbor, Ash (Dominic West) which, trips of its outer covering reveals a large painting obviously done by a child–though Ash insists that he never had children?

There is, of course, a honored place for films that are challenging, those which required two or three viewing to make sense of them. "Mulholland Drive" is an excellent example of a film that seems pretentious at first sighting but upon repeat viewing not only makes sense, but makes us kick ourselves as though to say, "Why didn't I think of that?" "The Forgotten," by contrast, conludes on a note that is simply undeserved, making us dismayed that we have been toyed with and ultimately left hanging.

Rated PG-13. 89 minutes © Harvey Karten
at [email protected]

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