Neverwas

Given the presence of such notable cast members as Aaron Eckhart, Ian McKellen, William Hurt, and Nick Nolte, it really is shocking just how dull Neverwas eventually becomes. The story revolves around a psychiatrist named Zach Riley (Eckhart), who goes to work in the very same institute where his father was treated years earlier. There, he meets a mysterious old patient (McKellen) with a tenuous grasp on reality, and it’s not long before Zach uncovers a few of his father’s buried secrets. Writer/director Joshua Michael Stern imbues Neverwas with a somber, almost ethereal sense of style, which – when combined with the extraordinarily slow pace – lends the film a tedious, tiresome quality. It certainly doesn’t help that the more fantastical elements in Stern’s screenplay become more and more pronounced as the movie progresses, making it virtually impossible to care about Zach’s plight. Eckhart delivers an expectedly sturdy performance, while McKellen goes over-the-top early and often (although, to be fair, the character demands such histrionics). Stern’s reliance on overly-convenient plot developments – eg a key discovery that Zach makes midway through (he walks into a house that just happens to be unlocked) – exacerbates the film’s problems, and it seems obvious that Neverwas is unlikely to find much of an audience outside of the film festival circuit.

** out of ****