only from some of the cast. The film is not as cohesive as you'd expect from its marquee. On the page it looks likes the who is who of acting are about to tell a riveting tale, I mean we are talking Academy award winners Kim Basinger, Charlize Theron and Jennifer Lawrence (before she won hers of course) flanked by a slew of critically acclaimed supporting actors like Danny Pino, Joaquim de Almeida and Robin Tunney just to name a few. Yet somewhere along the way the story gets quite sluggish and some of the actors begin to look perplexed (especially Theron who is usually above the mark in all her roles) and/or disinterested. Perhaps the most harrowing performance you'll see here comes from Kim Basinger who plays the mother of Mariana (Lawrence & later Theron) and the way she in not so many words conveys the pain, anguish and discontent of her character Nina, a married mother of four who is trapped in a very routine and passionless marriage. Mariana (as played by Lawrence) appears in the flashback scenes in a supporting but very poignant role, her decisions help shape and provide a resolution for the movie.
Review of The Burning Plain
