North Star

Directed by Kristin Scott Thomas, North Star follows three sisters (Scarlett Johansson’s Katherine, Sienna Miller’s Victoria, and Emily Beecham’s Georgina) as they converge on a country estate for their mother’s (Scott Thomas’ Diana) wedding. It’s a familiar premise that’s employed to completely generic and underwhelming effect by Scott Thomas, as the first-time filmmaker, working from her and John Micklethwait’s screenplay, delivers a well-made and well-acted endeavor that remains unable to capture the viewer’s interest and attention from start to finish – with the arms-length atmosphere perpetuated by an ongoing emphasis on melodramatic subplots and tedious character encounters. (There is, for example, an entirely tiresome digression focused on Georgina and her philandering husband.) It’s subsequently not surprising to discover that there’s virtually nothing here to get invested in or engrossed by, and there’s little doubt, as well, that the movie’s overall effectiveness is diminished significantly by its recurring use of sitcom-level conventions and attributes. (The total lack of laughs exacerbates this feeling, to put it mildly.) By the time the desperate, far-from-emotionally-resonant finale rolls around, North Star has confirmed its place as a complete misfire that just doesn’t work on any level it attempts.

* out of ****