“Beautiful Creatures” is a film with high ambitions: to be the next teen movie franchise. Though the film may not have achieved this, the latest work by Richard LaGravenese (“Freedom Writers”) is worth at least the price of admission for the entertainment, if not artistic, value.
An adaptation of the popular young adult novel by Tami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, “Beautiful Creatures” stars Alice Englert and Alden Ehrenreich as Lena Duchannes and Ethan Wate, respectively. Lena is what used to be referred to as a witch, but the movie refers to her simply as a “caster,” and Ethan is the mortal she falls in love with. The film also stars well-known cast members Jeremy Irons (“The Lion King”), Viola Davis (“The Help”), Emma Thompson (“Love Actually”), and Emmy Rossum (“Phantom of the Opera”).
Set in a small town in the modern-day deep south, “Beautiful Creatures” plays off of modern stereotypes – with jokes that often fall flat. Visually the movie is striking, but the dialogue and voiceovers are somewhat hollow and contrived. Many of the characters are cliché, such as the overtly religious good-girl, the tribal-print-wearing spiritual guide and the thick-rimmed-glasses hipster. The film includes many references to classic literature—Lena and Ethan share a love of poets like Bukowski and have an affinity for the public library. These characters at first seem disparate with the movie’s other themes, but are worthwhile additions all the same.
“Beautiful Creatures” has all the key components of a teen love story, but fails to bind the multiple storylines together. Not only is the movie a romance, it also contains several subplots involving Lena’s family of spell casters. The supporting character acting is strong but overwrought, as in the case of Emma Thompson as lead villain Seraphine. The cinematography is similarly overdramatic, made up of strong light-and-dark contrasts that would better suit a music video than a feature-length film.
Debut leads Englert and Ehrenreich are believable in their roles even when dialogue and plot line are lacking, and the on-screen lovebirds will earn sympathy from any audience members who remember the intensity of first love. Much like the “Twilight” films it is apparently trying to emulate, “Beautiful Creatures” is accompanied by an original soundtrack which is itself noteworthy.
Luckily anti-fans of the “Twilight” franchise need not be scared off by the similarities. “Beautiful Creatures” is a much better done look at young love as Lena and Ethan are both well-developed characters with a much healthier relationship than any of the “Twilight” characters.
The film also features impressive achievements in special effects and editing. It is easy to suspend disbelief of the supernatural when dazzled with such stunning imagery. Despite the fact that the plot is full of holes, the film is distinctly pretty to look at—the true beautiful creature of its title.
The movie may keep audiences’ interest, but it would benefit from more attention to storyline and less to visual effects. Many of the strengths of the movie are irrelevant to the actual story—the characters are well costumed and the sets certainly beautiful, but these aspects do not provide enough foundation for a high-quality film. Still, all things considered, “Beautiful Creatures” is fun to watch—and at times mock. It may have aimed too high, but the film accomplishes at least one goal: It is entertaining.
