THE HOURS

1923, acclaimed writer Virginia Woolf (Kidman) is battling against mental illness and writer's block as she tries to finish her novel, Mrs Dalloway. In 1951, housewife Laura Brown (Moore) is reading that same book but is realising that she is not happy with her life. In 2001, Clarissa Vaughan (Streep) is having trouble coming to terms with the fact that her life will be empty without Richard (Harris), as he is slowly dying from Aids.

Adapted from the Pulitzer Winning novel by Michael Cunningham, The Hours intermixes the stories of three women, all connected to the novel Mrs Dalloway. The problem is that none of the stories are very interesting.

You cannot argue that the acting and directing for this film are superb. Stephen Daldry interweaves the three stories marvellously and along with Phillip Glass's haunting score, he gives each story a unique style. The three lead actresses throw their hearts and souls into their characters and all turn in career defining moments (especially a barely recognisable Kidman). The supporting case is also top notch but it is the story however which lets everything down and this major fault has to go back to the novel itself.

Each of the three stories is very depressing and only snapshots of these characters lives. None of the back-stories to how the events came into being are explored. Why is Laura Brown suicidal, when she has a husband and son who adore her? What is the intense connection between Clarissa and Richard (a very good Ed Harris)? Only Virginia Woolf's story has any kind of explanation and that is only revealed in an excellent confrontation scene between her and her husband, Leonard (played by Stephen Dillane) towards the end of the film. The plot seems just an excuse of excessive melodrama and a chance to say that women are emotional time bombs waiting to explode and take everyone with them.

This is another movie made just to win awards. A lot of critics feel that they have to love this because of the quality of the acting and direction. All these positives do not a good or interesting movie make, as The Hours is a depressing and boring snapshot of three women's overly dramatic take on life. You'll be counting the minutes never mind The Hours until it finally ends.

Commentary by Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman, Commentary by director Stephen Daldry and novelist Michael Cunningham, Filmmakers introduction, 4 featurettes & Theatrical trailer

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2003