The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them

Sorry, but I had trouble understanding the words that the characters were speaking. This was particularly true for Jessica Chastain's mother with a French accent. Was this intentional for some unknown reason? OK, so there were 3 different versions of the same movie. So maybe I should reserve judgment until viewing all 3. But viewing the first one with my wife, we just did not "get it." Jessica Chastain was depressed. OK, we get that. But it was very hard to sit through 2 hours of watching her in that state, believe me. So hard that I really do not care to watch the other 2 versions. Normally I would look forward to any movie with Jessica Chastain. But now, I will really have to think twice.

. . . and now we must survive what feels like FIVE THOUSAND YEARS IN 'EL. Plus, just when it seems that the Wishy-Washy Indecision cannot possibly get any worse, the end credits for this flick disclose that it's ACTUALLY some sort of a trilogy, so that masochists can savor HIM and HER after persevering all the way through THEM. I once had a classmate who timed each entry into single-user home bathrooms at parties if the line got too long. After two minutes, she'd yell out something like, "Time to tinkle, Tina, or GET OFF THE POT!" THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ELEANOR RIGBY appears to be a story in which no one ever comes close to tinkling. My viewing partner said that watching imaginary paint dry on a canvas that an abstract artist has left intentionally blank would seem like the trailer for MAD MAX: FURY ROAD compared to RIGBY. If a film student wastes eight minutes of your time on an Artsy-Fartsy non-story such as RIGBY, one would hope they'd have to repeat the course. There should be a law against Hollywood charging the going rate to see a two-hour film with a mysterious title and a totally limp tale!

Are these people at Hollywood playing a biggest joke or is it a part of some trap like a heist or something just for the sake of robbing cash from the people in the audience making a fool out of them by inserting fake Oscar winning actors no story and proper narrative little sex and slow pace on purpose only to satisfy critics and win more Oscars the cycle keeps on going it never stops. OK enough of my rant above here is what makes me really mad it is films like these that are totally unnecessary boring long stretched never ending sad tragic love or tragedy stories like these are releasing likes pieces of candy bars from vending machine,please stop it. Whatever the genre is the collective set of films are good only if the narrative needs the extension little variation in characters otherwise it is just another usual TV series a great example is the sunset trilogy of Ethan Hawke & Julie Delpy something like that gives the viewer some entertainment and keeps them hooked but this so called film is pure embarrassing. The disappearance of Eleanor Rigby is divided into three parts him,her & them released in 2013 & 2014 respectively i have not seen him and her but i checked this out and wow i was kicking myself i mean what a waste of good money i could have given it to some needy person instead. The Cast:first of all what the hell was James McAvoy doing here the whole time his expressions were like "not interested" in this lame script,Jessica Chastian who is also one of the producers of this she looks drunk in every scene what type of sleepy acting is this may i ask must be something that even Al Pacino would watch and say wow this lady has surpassed us but of course in sarcasm. The Plot:is there a plot in this film hell no it is just about a couple going through difficult times but keep on behaving like idiots they are trying too hard to get back with each other knowing the relationship wont work anymore. Connor is useless guy who hangs out at bars and roads and Eleanor is a worthless student argues with her teacher both these fools never listen to any advice from anyone at all. What a stupid and most pointless film this was what ever that perspective angle storyline of Eleanor by herself & by Connor was the chemistry never works out why bother. The title is wrong too she never disappears not physically but from Connor's life.to understand what was this subject about one does not simply(quoting Boromir from Lotr)have to see all 3 films this one is haunting me already. This film is quite disturbing can cause some serious brain damage i am warning people not to fall for the critics faked positive reviews this project is absurd and beyond ridiculous. Overall The Disappearance Of Eleanor Rigby:Them 2014 is a solid waste of time & money my rating is 1/10.Avoid it

The movie really push the viewers' edge in telling it's story. It kind of run on a badly too stable mood for all the entire two hour run time. The story gets to be that frustrating because it kind of uses the weirdest editing style I have ever seen. It makes one feels a bit thrown off in watching this movie. It took me some time to notice that the story flow actually uses the alternating back and forth flow direction. I learned that this movie is actually the cinema release of the two versions Him and Her, each at about 90 and 100 minutes. Well, considering from this movie's atmosphere, that would have been a pretty stressful time to spend by watching those movies. But on the other hand, the acting work is surprisingly a great work in overall, especially by the two lead cast James McAvoy and Jessica Chastain. They both exhibit really nice character involvement in those engaging scenes of strong emotion play. I really like how James played Conor when he has an argument with his friend at the bar. Jessica Chastain did a great job in portraying the difficult emotions Eleanor has.

The first time we see the couple (the first scene), they are so much in love. The scene is filled with fun, excitement, and such passionate love for each other; we are easily drawn into that magical moment of theirs. The next time we see these people, it's like their lives have taken a right about turn. Something terrible has occurred in their life, we don't know what exactly. The movie as well as the characters try their best to keep away from that topic (people who have read about the movie might know what has happened, I don't want to spoil it for others). Although the path has been tread before, Ned Benson has woven an intriguing exploration of a couple after a tragedy, and it's great for a debut feature. When something terrible happens in our life, the two things we usually tend to do are: trying our best not to remember it. If we do remember, we try to find a close person around on whom we can shift all the blame and direct all our hatred. The best thing we can do is, accept the situation, and let time take over and do its trick. The topic has been dealt with time and again, in movies as well as novels. With a little more depth, the characters might have been more intriguing. Nonetheless, I was still interested in their lives, and the beautiful one-on-one scenes in the second half were really engaging and emotional. These characters pour their hearts out, either to let it out (and lessen the burden on their mind) or to make the other person feel better. The one which really stands out is the one in which William Hurt (as Eleanor's father) shares an old traumatizing memory with her, involving her; the monologue transports us to the actual place of the event, and we can see the agony in his eyes. The acting by the two leads, Chastain and McAvoy, is brilliant; it's the emotional backbone of the film. Their eyes have such sorrow; though we know so less about the situation, we are intrigued by what has happened. The sometimes-fun-sometimes-supportive characters played by actors like William Hurt, Isabelle Hupert (it was amazing to see this French talent as Eleanor's mother in this film), Viola Davis, Bill Hader, Jess Weixler and Ciarán Hinds are interesting; their presence makes the story more appealing. I wish the characters were developed a little more; I don't know if the Him-Her version has more depth or not, I'm yet to see it. The ending might baffle or annoy some, but to me, it was different and delightful. It conveyed the message it intended to, and the background music by Son Lux was just perfect for it.

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ELEANOR RIGBY : THEM (2014) *** 1/2 James McAvoy, Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Bill Hader, Ciaran Hinds, Isabelle Huppert, William Hurt, Nina Arianda. First a quick note: filmmaker Ned Benson (who also wrote the screenplay) shot two separate versions of RIGBY (subtitled HIM & HER) in the POVs of his principals in the same story ---- a young married couple experiences a grave personal loss which results in the flight of its titular lead (Chastain in a sublime turn of highs and lows) and fight in her husband (McAvoy is equally wonderful) who more-or-less accepts the crumbling of his marriage, as well as his unstable career as a restaurateur in New York. Benson allows plenty of room for his actors to breathe and some juicy moments with an excellent ensemble of talent including an exceedingly low-key and wise Hurt and slightly off-beat bohemian bent by Huppert as Chastain's Connecticut ensconced parents and Davis as her dry, world-weary arts studies instructor. Colors of grief have never been so succinct and does not betray the theme: love conquers all but nearly dies in the process. Benson has some nice subtle moments of hammering the them thru (look sharply for a slightly out-of-focus background shot of a tag-art/graffiti message summing up the film as a whole.

Conor Ludlow (James McAvoy) and Eleanor Rigby (Jessica Chastain) are a married NYC couple who has suffered a devastating lost. His restaurant is failing. She struggles and goes back to school taking Professor Friedman (Viola Davis)'s class. Her family Mary Rigby (Isabelle Huppert), Julian Rigby (William Hurt) and Katy Rigby (Jess Weixler) tries to help. She got her name from the Beatles song since her parents met waiting for a rumored Beatles show. The acting is fine. The story is quietly poetic. I need more consistent rage. This is a lot of quiet sadness. Also it feels too disjointed and manufactured. Some of it is probably the name. It's kind of annoying. Anybody with that name would call herself Elle or something else. Part of it is the fact that this is probably better as two separate movies. I just keep wanting for the two characters to get together and cry it out. It's a bit too precious with saying out loud what the big lost was. The whole thing needs more gritty blow up. These characters need to stop dancing around the subject. It's not as dramatic.

This review is for both the HIM and HER versions of the movie. please note this is just one guy's opinion.. My friend who I watched the movie with loved it.. unfortunately, I did not have the same experience. THE GOOD: 1. The acting, except for Jessica Chastain's performance, is good and all of the actors did their jobs well considering the script. Jess Weixler as the sister did exceptionally well for such a small part. She carried all the scenes in which she appears. 2. Sound and editing. I could hear and understand all of the dialog spoken. The transitions between scenes and the flow of the storytelling felt very natural. THE BAD: 1. The story & dialog felt very contrived & pretentious. A couple deals with the death of their infant son and their relationship breaks down afterward. This is the root of the story but the way these characters deal with such a tragedy is what I found to be so contrived. For example: James McAvoy's Character Conor has a pet goldfish "Ralph" and it dies when his Dad accidentally overfeeds or feeds it the wrong food. The two men have a "heart to heart" talk during a walk to the river to dispose of Ralph's corpse, which is in a little cardboard box, by throwing it in the river. seriously, who would do that? would you do that? another example is a scene where the two main characters are sitting on the sidewalk having a normal discussion about their relationship troubles which is only very odd considering the circumstances that one of them just got hit by a car and The Rescue personal which is clearly there for the whole discussion appear to be just standing around off screen waiting for them to finish the conversation before they load him into the ambulance. There are many more moments like these and it may seem trivia and unimportant to some but for me it is this lack of attention to details that break the story. 2. The cinema photography is too dark in quite a few scenes and the soft blue color correction tint used is an interesting choice and will probably not be a problem for most people but i found it distracting. It took me out of the movie viewing experience just by the fact that I noticed it. 3. Jessica Chastain.. Her acting or her character in this movie rubbed me the wrong way.. i found it wooden. She was unable to emote in a believable manner.. I did not like or sympathize with her character at all but i am not sure whether it is her performance or the way her character is written.. maybe we are not suppose to like her and the fact that her character has difficulty expressing emotion could be intentional.. if so mission accomplished. 4.The relationship between the two main characters is strange from the beginning and why in the world the main guy would want to stay with a such a flaky, cold and emotional distant person is beyond me. I watched both movies back to back. The HIM version first and then HER. I liked HIM better than HER but overall hated THEM both. Mediocrity at its best and a complete waste of time unless you are a film maker or screenwriter looking to learn from someone else's mistakes. side note: I recommend watching THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST (1988) instead which also stars William Hurt and contains the very same subject matter of a couple that deals with the loss of their son and the break-up of their marriage.

The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby was originally intended as a movie to be focused on a man's perspective as his wife disappeared out of his life. When writer-director Ned Benson brought star Jessica Chastain on, she asked him about Eleanor's perspective and he was so enraptured with this question that he wrote an entire version of the movie dedicated to her view point of the marriage. The two films were shot simultaneously, but times and audiences being what they are, the distributor cut a third version of the film so that audiences could experience the whole thing in one go. As someone who has seen all three versions of the films (his, her and them) I can tell you this is a mistake. The best way to experience the film is by watching some combination of the Him & Her versions (pick your poison, watching either one first has its benefits and drawbacks, although "Him" does start earlier in the timeline than "Her"). The problem with Them is that it reveals that Rigby is actually a very simplistic movie. It's the story of married couple Connor Ludlow (James McAvoy) and Eleanor Rigby (Jessica Chastain) whose marriage has suffered a devastating blow. Rigby tries to kill herself and when she is unsuccessful she leaves her husband and the two begin separate journeys of discovery. The joy in the Him & Her versions is seeing the different ways the two people experience the same event. Rigby and Ludlow both disappear from each other's narratives for long periods of time posing questions about certain events, questions that get answered when you watch whichever of the two movies you choose to watch first. There's also a handful of scenes that are the same in both stories but the tone and information conveyed is different, showing how people can interpret things differently. All the joy of this is wiped out of the Them version in which everything plays chronologically and we don't get multiple versions of the same scenes. It's an okay movie, but it will leave you wondering what the fuss is all about.

Talk about being Full of Yourself. No, Not the Characters in the Film, They are just Suffering from those Rich People Blues, but First Time Filmmaker, Director Ned Benson. He is as Spoiled as the Two Characters (Him and Her) that He Wallows with for Three (Count em') Movies. One Movie about James Macavoy and One Movie about Jessica Chastain, the Titler Sulkers of the First Two Films, and then, for the Grand Finale, Both of "Them". Yikes. Isn't it Hard Enough to Draw Empathy for Rich Folks Self Pity, watching it in a Movie is a Hard Sell and here it's "No Sale". Can't Imagine the Cast and Crew Working on the Movies weren't Suffering Depression of Their own, and Obviously the Director should be on Suicide Watch because something isn't quite Right with the Fellow and His "All the Lonely People" Obsession is Disturbing. He has a Privileged Life and He should Get On With It and "Let it Be". This is an Excruciatingly Dire and Dull Movie with Dialog and Characters that are Uninteresting. So to Add to the Drudgery, there are No Answers to much of the Story-Line, it just Meanders in all of its Morose Glory and Asks the Viewer to Care. How Can the Audience Care except in the most Cursory and Shallow Acknowledgement, when the Withholding of Information makes the Whole Thing Elusive (the Baby's story). Here's a Movie where a Two Year Old's Untimely Death is Turned into a MaGuffin. That's not Only Insulting to the Short Life of the Tragic Toddler, but an Insult to the Audience.