The Greatest

A watchable yet rather run-of-the-mill tearjerker, The Greatest follows married couple Allen (Pierce Brosnan) and Grace (Susan Sarandon) as they attempt to cope with the tragic death of their 18-year-old son (Aaron Johnson’s Bennett) – with the sudden appearance of Bennett’s pregnant girlfriend (Carey Mulligan’s Rose) initially throwing a wrench into the pair’s grieving process. First-time filmmaker Shana Feste does a nice job of immediately capturing the viewer’s interest, as the film opens with the admittedly surprising death of Johnson’s character – with the subsequent inclusion of a captivating single-take shot, in which Allen, Grace, and their other son (Johnny Simmons’ Ryan) ride home from Bennett’s funeral, certainly cementing the movie’s decidedly promising atmosphere. It’s only as Feste’s less-than-subtle proclivities become more and more evident that The Greatest begins to lose its grip on the viewer, as the writer/director places an increasingly prominent emphasis on elements of a disappointingly conventional nature. This, in turn, ensures that the film ultimately possesses the feel of a made-for-television melodrama, with the uniformly superb performances – Brosnan is especially strong here – ultimately standing as The Greatest‘s primary saving grace. It’s also worth noting that Feste has peppered the proceedings with several stellar stand-alone sequences (eg Michael Shannon turns in an expectedly gripping cameo as the man partially responsible for Bennett’s death), yet it’s clear that the filmmaker’s lamentably simplistic modus operandi dulls the movie’s emotional impact (which is a shame, certainly, given the inherently moving subject matter). The end result is a passable debut from a relatively promising director, although the impressive cast and solid setup ensures that it’s difficult not to walk away from the movie feeling just a twinge of disappointment.

**1/2 out of ****