About the film (courtesy of Warner Bros.):
Theodore “Theo” Decker (Ansel Elgort) was 13 years old when his mother was killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The tragedy changes the course of his life, sending him on a stirring odyssey of grief and guilt, reinvention and redemption, and even love. Through it all, he holds on to one tangible piece of hope from that terrible day…a painting of a tiny bird chained to its perch.
The Goldfinch, based on a wildly successful novel by Donna Tartt, is hoping to make similar gains as a feature length film. Spoiler…it will not. The drama, directed by John Crowley (Brooklyn (2015)), aspires to be something that is more than what it has been transformed into. The story takes place in two separate time periods, one following Theo as a child (played by Oakes Fegley) and the other being the grown up version of Theo (played by Ansel Elgort). While this approach allows for a more in-depth story to be told, John Crowley becomes completed enamored with this idea. The end result is a movie that is too long with too little happening to keep its audience’s attention.
The overall story of The Goldfinch is a good one. There’s intrigue, loss, drama, thrilling moments and a sprinkle of romance. The issue is that everything could have been accomplished successfully in a mere 90 minutes, yet this version felt the need to tack on another full hour. Young Theo gets a ton of screen time and, for better or for worse, his story is just repetition from different angles. As an adult, Theo’s story is definitely more interesting but it’s still drawn out.
Sharing the screen, are a few actors not named Ansel Elgort you’ll know such as Finn Wolfhard, Nicole Kidman, Sarah Paulson, Luke Wilson, Denis O’Hare, Peter Jacobson (this dude is in everything lately) and Jeffrey Wright. That’s a heavy amount of talent to be featured in such a lackluster film. The majority of these actors have scenes that don’t allow them to show off their skills. As a matter of fact, Jeffrey Wright is one of the very few that really earns his paycheck. Even though Elgort gets a lot of face time, his performance in Baby Driver (2017) this is not.
Just about everything in The Goldfinch is shallow and excessive. By attempting to be vague throughout the majority of the film’s plot, all the movie does is distance itself from the connection or vested interest that audiences may have gotten. There are certainly more than a view “nodding points” throughout the slowly unfolding story.
If you do make it through its entirety, you will see that it gets better towards the final 25%. Unfortunately the final payoff isn’t enough to completely ignore the very long route it takes to get there. I’m not saying The Goldfinch is a completely terrible movie, I’m just saying that it’ll be too slow and uneventful for most people’s tastes. Saving this movie to watch at home would be the most prudent course of action. All 149 minutes of it are available to see in theaters if that’s what you’re wanting to do with your day.
