For me, Ira Sachs' new drama didn’t really work. It’s an intriguing enough story, but it has a very big execution problem. The movie is supposed to be about Franz Rogowski's character's journey, his attempt to try a different thing and make it work, and Passages is designed as a character study. The movie is not written as a melodramatic narrative; it’s not designed to be plot-driven. But then… we get almost no access to this guy’s feelings. The camera doesn’t spend time with his face the way it should, and we don’t know why he makes the decisions he does. And so, eventually, the film really doesn’t have much to say. One important example of this are the much-touted sex scenes in this movie: in none of them do we have access to Franz Rogowski's face. This makes no sense. The sex is central to the character, his development, and his choices, and yet we don't know what is going on with him at all! Instead, the camera hangs out with asses or the face of his partner! I don't get it. The story feels like it's just not told well.
One thing that is important to say, however, is that we are all blessed by having more Adèle Exarchopoulos on our screens.
Oh, PS: This was officially "unrated" since the MPAA gave this movie an NC-17 rating. Why? Who knows. Actually, I know. Homophobia.
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