The Goldfinch
***
Dir: John Crowley (15, 149 mins)
Donna Tartt’s brilliant Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is translated into celluloid by John Crowley, the director behind the Saorise Ronan vehicle Brooklyn, in a starry adaptation that pays homage to the source material but ultimately lacks its richness. The film splits into two timeframes, following both the younger and elder Theodore Decker – played by Oakes Fegley and Ansel Elgort. Young Theo is at an art gallery with his mother when there is a horrific incident which kills her and leaves him in the possession of a painting, the Goldfinch of the title. What follows is an absorbing, Dickensian-like tale, embracing wealthy socialites, noble carpenters, love trysts, male friendship and down’n’dirty deeds with forgers in Amsterdam. The performances are strong, although Nicole Kidman as the socialite who takes in the orphaned Theo has distracting CGI de-ageing and prosthetic old ageing and Jeffrey Wright shines as father figure Hobie. Ultimately, however, The Goldfinch feels like it should have been a mini-series rather than a movie with the richness of its source material.
Opens Sept 27
