The Aspern Papers (2019)

Set in late 19th century Venice, an American book editor (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) moves into the home of an old woman (Vanessa Redgrave) and her spinster niece (Joely Richardson) under false pretenses. What he really wants are the letters of the long deceased poet (Jon Kortajarena) who was once the old woman's lover. Based on the 1888 novella by Henry James and directed by Julian Landais. Although it has James Ivory (A ROOM WITH A VIEW) as one of its executive producers, the film was not well received and received only a very limited release in the U.S. early this year. Most of the complaints were aimed toward the movie's methodical pacing which is meticulously slow. I had no problem with the film's pacing. It was the painful performance of the colorless Jonathan Rhys Meyers who recites his lines as if he learned them phonetically. Redgrave steals every scene she's in but if the film belongs to anyone, it belongs to Richardson who brings shading and layers to her spinster. The shimmering cinematography is courtesy of Philippe Guilbert and there's a superb score by Vincent Carlo. With Lois Robbins and Poppy Delevingne.