Emotional Arithmetic

One of the other more minor problems with "Autumn Hearts" is the lack of logical progression for any of the characters.....Fine actors all and each of them let down by the source material.....s hard not to at least mildly recommend the film (also known as "Emotional Arithmetic") on the basis of the performances.....s perhaps the most damning aspect of "Autumn Hearts....This may also be a symptom of poor editing..... ... Full Review

We come back to the opening sequence later in the movie, when we understand why everyone seems so unhappy. What it's really about are the performances, mostly by Plummer and von Sydow, the impatient older husband and the compassionate old poet, who give the film an edge and a heart, respectively, out of proportion to its narrative. ... Full Review

Their marriage seems warm but rickety, partly because she is somewhat unstable -- people keep urging her to take her pills -- and partly because he is a world-class grump, a difficult, abrasive man ("There's nothing I hate more than good intentions") brought to angry life in a wonderful performance by Plummer. ... Full Review

The charm of Paolo Barzman's second film rests considerably in the hands of the capable actors--Susan Sarandon, Max von Sydow, Christopher Plummer and Gabriel Byrne--all who have a maturity to carry off their parts in the film with grace. As I watched the film I could not help but note the growing interest filmmakers in family bonds-in Emotional Arithmetic it is merely a subplot balancing a "virtual" family that suffered during the Nazi rule with that of a real family comprising three generations living in ... Full Review

Watching their individual transitions into professional, polite actors is far more interesting than what was likely intended. The film follows Melanie (Susan Sarandon) - a survivor of the Drancy "transit camp" where Jews were detained by the Vichy government prior to being shipped off to Auschwitz - in her modern medicated married life to a somewhat embittered professor (Christopher Plummer). ... Full Review

Plummer's cold-fish portrayal is almost too convincing for comfort. It's 1985 and Melanie Winters (Susan Sarandon), a Holocaust survivor, lives in a farmhouse in the Eastern Townships with a splendid view, marred only by the presence of her husband, history professor David Winters (Christopher Plummer) who has affairs with his students and acts like Mr. Grumpy at home. ... Full Review

After feeling an instant connection with Cohens characters and believing the authors novel had profound universal appeal, Barzman set out to direct what would become a profoundly moving film. Sarandon delivers an outstanding performance as Melanie. ... Full Review

Or it could be Barzman's penchant for filming the characters staring meaningfully at the horizon, across rolling hillsides and quiet lakes. When the now-elderly Jakob travels to Quebec at Melanie's invitation, he surprises her by arriving in the company of Christopher Lewis (Gabriel Byrne), a non-Jewish Irishman who had been interred at Drancy by mistake and whose boyhood infatuation with Melanie has been little dulled by the passing decades. ... Full Review

Watching their individual transitions into professional, polite actors is far more interesting than what was likely intended. The film follows Melanie (Susan Sarandon) a survivor of the Drancy transit camp where Jews were detained by the Vichy government prior to being shipped off to Auschwitz in her modern medicated married life to a somewhat embittered professor (Christopher Plummer). ... Full Review

It's a pretty interesting mix of high-profile talent, and looks to be a serious but worthy wrap up to this year's festival. Meanwhile, Sarandon's character is trying to deal with her experiences from the camp, while also fighting depression and a poor relationship with a philandering husband, played by Plummer. ... Full Review