Cold Mountain  冷山

Hero:Jude Law & Nicole Kidman

It's not often that, when the primary thread of a movie fails, the secondary storylines are compelling(interesting or exciting enough to keep your attention completely) enough to make the overall experience a positive one. However, that occurs with Cold Mountain, a Civil War era romance where the love affair fizzles(fail), but the episodic(happening as a series of separate events that have no clear connection between them) approach allows the narrative to breathe. The end result is that the film has more to offer than the tepid(not very excited or enthusiastic) Nicole Kidman/Jude Law pairing. There are a lot of things to like about Cold Mountain, but those expecting director Anthony Minghella to recapture the tragic, romantic enchantment (attractiveness) of The English Patient(Academy award 1997, the best movie) will be disappointed.

The second half of Cold Mountain is significantly better than the first. Writer/director has the unenviable task of cramming(to put things into a space that is too small) a lot of background information into the first 60 minutes, as well as getting things off to an explosive start. While we are provided with all the necessary information, the underlying feelings are regrettably absent. The central motivating(with strong power to promote) force for the main characters - an unquenchable(impossible to satisfy or to be ceased) love - comes across more like a writer's conceit(a regarding of oneself with undue favor) than something elemental(basic) that exists between these two. We know that Inman (Law) and Ada (Kidman) are in love because the movie tells us so, not because we are given a compelling reason to believe it. Consequently, although we end up caring about the characters on an individual basis, the question of whether they are given a chance to re-connect is of secondary importance.

The movie opens in 1864, with the South well on its way to losing the Civil War. After recovering from a devastating injury, infantryman Inman decides to desert(give up) and make his way back to his home town of Cold Mountain, North Carolina, where he hopes to have a life with Ada, the preacher's(someone whose job is to give religious speeches or lead religious ceremonies in some Christian churches) daughter. It has been three years since they last saw each other, and he doesn't know for sure whether she is waiting for him. They hardly know each other - their interaction(the process by which different things affect each other or change each other) was brief, but left a lasting impression. However, the trek(march) back to Cold Mountain proves to be an arduous(extremely difficult) one. Along the way, Inman meets a number of odd people, some of whom are interested in helping, and others who see him only as a way to make a profit.

Meanwhile, Ada has been waiting. Following the death of her father (Donald Sutherland), she has let the farm lapse into disarray. Enter Ruby Thewes (Ren Zellweger), a plain-speaking freespirit who offers to help Ada rebuild the farm in exchange for meals and lodging. A bargain is struck and the two begin a mutually beneficial partnership that develops into a friendship. But troubles lurk(to wait, sometimes hiding, in order to frighten, annoy, or attack someone). The head of the local "home guards" (Ray Winstone, who does evil as well as anyone), a group empowered to kill deserters, wants Ada and her land, and Ruby's father (Brendan Gleeson) pays his daughter an unexpected visit.

Cold Mountain's strengths lie in its vignettes. Inman and Ada's paths to their reunion are broken into various episodes. Some of these are quite good, and even the least impressive retains some degree of interest. It's fair to say in Cold Mountain's case that the journey counts more than what happens once the destination is reached. In fact, one could make a legitimate argument that the quality keeping this movie from greatness is the lack of fire in Inman and Ada's relationship. Give them the chemistry of Bogart and Bergman in Casablanca (or even Fiennes and Scott-Thomas in The English Patient), and this would have been an unforgettable motion picture.

Cold Mountain was adapted from the long, complex novel by Charles Frazier, and clearly proved to be a challenge for Minghella to capture on film. The movie has its share of structural problems, and may be a little longer than seems necessary, but it rarely lost my attention. I would not place this in the top echelon(level) of end-of-the-year motion pictures, but it's certainly a successful adaptation, features numerous memorable performances (mostly by the supporting players), and is worth a post-holiday expenditure of time and money.

 Recommendation: an uncomplicated love story happened in a world of intricacy. Pity and sorrow, but full of expectation.