Una

After this film was screened at the Toronto Film Festival today, an audience member asked director Andrews about the skill of lead actor Mendelsohn in his portrayal of such a deceitful and manipulative character. The host repeated the question without the adjectives but fortunately the question was answered as it was asked. Mr. Andrews noted that many audience members didn't see the "Ray" character in that fashion at all. Indeed this ambiguity and its affect on Una is at the heart of this film as well as the play Blackbird upon which it is based. I generally am not happy when plays are translated into films but I found this adaptation to be quite the exception. The camera was able to extend the scope of the play to include scenes from the crucial events which occurred 15 years before the main confrontation which occupies most of the film. A brilliant first film from director Andrews which will hopefully reach the wide audience it deserves.

This review of Una is spoiler free *** (3/5) IT'S ONLY A short time into Benedict Andrews' flawed but powerful paean about the complications of life after child abuse. When we have Rooney Mara's tile character Una, walking into her former neighbour's workplace to confront him about their past, specifically to ask him questions about his leaving after a sexual encounter the two had when she was 13-years-old. Written by David Harrower from his own complex play Blackbird. First time director Andrews depicts a series of heart wrenching events from a beautifully sun drenched barbecue party, with a young Una meeting her neighbour, Rey (Ben Mendelsohn) for the first time (fantastic work by newcomer Ruby Stokes), to him sitting in a court room awaiting a hearing in a couple of the many shining flashbacks. He shoots these brilliant moments with gripping almost real results. Led by Mara's brave naked performance and Mendelsohn's unflinching persona Una is a riveting drama which succeeds in almost all aspects. It's not always an easy watch as Rey seduces this young girl, there's no graphic imagery on show but the words between Una and Rey physically describing what he did to her is enough to make you shudder. Physically she's damaged; she's been in constant pain for most of her life. Emotionally she's changed which her concerning mother (Fitzgerald) sees and tries to make amends by talking to her. There are moments when her intent to be a hesitant woman bringing the good-cop-bad-cop routine card into the game, sometimes making her a brutal force sucking in all the sympathy. Rey, however, is the opposite, he is a broken man he feels sorry for leaving her in that situation. Throughout their conversation he begs for forgiveness hoping for one last drop of sympathy. Mendelsohn is so brilliantly nuanced here that he somehow manages to at least evoke a semblance of pity from the audience. While this works for a while thanks to Andrews' powerful direction managing to hold nothing back from his understanding of the characters to the general impact of drama. It's not always on top of its game as there are buried problems - one is the pacing, some of the story fails to translate itself from Harrower's intelligent playwriting as some of it feels overly slow. And some of the flashbacks intertwine a few of the more important confrontation scenes. This unfortunately tends to be the bigger problem as it often can become difficult to follow a certain point of the story. Despite this Una is a riveting provocative drama with outstanding tour de force performances from both parties. Though uncomfortable in its material, it's a unique way of filmmaking which almost manages to be real - even after the credits have rolled it stays with you forever. VERDICT: Worth the watch for the magnetic lead performances. But some of it feels that the play isn't correctly translated on the screen.

Only men would turn a barely teenaged girl's trauma into a pedophile's redemption arc love story. Nothing new, nothing worth watching.

Some of the most interesting cinematic style I've seen on film. Take note of the color and set composition throughout. All the actors are over the top. The pacing is perfect. Even the title resonates throughout the film and afterwards as the human condition. It's the cunning of the lies and the power of denial that can leave the viewer with a new take on the world as it really is. If you watched Bloodline on Netflix and The Night Of on HBO, you'll know why the actors in those productions are ideal for this film. As for the sets, every window, locker, bathroom stall, bed, door, roof, room, bar and backyard is significant for what is represents not just in this film, but as placeholders for how our minds work to make sense of the world. How to sort the difference between order and disorder in our society--the sad answer is in this film.

Half a century after the well-known Lolita of Vladimir Nabokov subtly transformed into a cinematographic masterpiece by Stanley Kubrick , Una (2016) presents the ravages of a few-months romance between a man in his forties and a 13-years-old girl. This analysis is essentially revealed through the eyes of this teenager who has become a woman particularly disturbed and confused by this past as short as devastating. Ben Mendelsohn and Rooney Mara play excellently, with an out-of-the-ordinary decency and an exemplary sobriety. In addition, the director Benedict Andrews successfully and coldly describes the havoc of an unusual relationship that challenges morality despite a 'consent' from the teen.

A tough, psychological drama about the trauma caused by pedophilia. A directorial debut by the Australian theatre director Benedict Andrews adapting the critically acclaimed stage play. A cinematic technique to parallel the real-time storytelling of a stage play of this nature is to have a curious camera voyeuristically track action. This serves as a plus but also a problem for this particular, sometimes hard to watch film. As a spectator 'spying' on such disturbing subject matter made me think twice about what I thought was morally right about the situation. I also would have liked to have seen more of the characters that had little screen time. That aside, extraordinary central performances by the emotionally cold Rooney Mara and unflinching Ben Mendelsohn.

A tale of forbidden love. The guy (Ben Mendelsohn) went to jail for it and started another life after that. The girl (Rooney Mara) still can't move on 15 years later, and confronts him. Also starring, Ruby Stokes and Riz Ahmed. Does sex even mean anything in our day and age? It certainly does when it comes to taboos such as „relations" between adult and minor – a story in the center of „Una". This particular topic may well be the most loaded of them all, which makes it difficult to even write about. It's an uncomfortable experience for sure, not just because of the topic, but for raising burning questions that nobody wants to answer, at least not in public. Not us the viewers, not the movie makers – director Benedict Andrews and David Harrower who has written both the theatre play and then screenplay „Una" is based on. The actors are satisfying. Mara is better than her usual (eloquent and tormented as suitable for the role), Mendelsohn is great as usual (one of the best not quite famous character actors the UK has today)... There is not much room for other major characters, but Stokes as young Una and Ahmed as the unwitting bystander brought into this mess are memorable too. I think I like Stoke's performance even better than Mara's but comparison is unfair because I have never admired Mara's acting abilities anyway. This is the first time that I have truly respected her screen work, ever. Bold role, bold project. The storytelling is, khm, less satisfying. Not only because of the uncomfortable topic and leaving much unanswered but overall approach is too artsy for my taste, so the movie has issues with pacing and holding tension. Una as a character would improve from additional development too. All in all, it's certainly compelling but I think it would make a more powerful short movie lasting, say, 30 minutes instead of 94.

I was several minutes into this film before I realized that it was taken from the play 'Blackbird', which I saw some years back. Unlike so many films adapted from plays, this one translates well, opening up locations and characters not in the play. It works. The setup is intense. A young woman confronts the man, a grown neighbor who seduced her when she was but 12 years old. They even planned to run away together when things fell apart and he was sent to prison. Now he has changed his name and put his life back together. But she is a mess, understandably. And that's just the initial setup.... The acting is solid. The writing and directing are first rate. If you are OK with a movie about the emotional aftermath of child molestation, this is a film worth seeing.

The film itself was pretty dull and low budget except for the exceptional acting but the truth of the matter is WHY would any sick director or film person want to make a film about a guilty Pedophile that gets a visit from his victim as an adult. The film not only blatantly tries to portray the Pedophile as having true love feelings for his child victim and it is unforgivable. No art or slice of life in this movie but a sick mind. Maybe the director thought converting this sick idea into a movie from a play is worthwhile. Honestly I agree with others that at least if the Pedophile did not violate her sexually it would have played better, even if supposedly she consented it is just an inappropriate message to send out to the world. There is no excuse for this type of story. I guess if a child that was molested by a Pedophile wants some redemption perhaps this movie might provide some solace yet maybe not. I left the film pretty disgusted that this poor victim was messed up for life - pretty messed up. And the ending of the Pedophile trying to make her feel special and that she was the only one 'he molested' or loved as he tries to state was just unfathomable and hard to believe. Great acting but sick subject. So many great stories to tell in life and this is not one of them. What is next for this director.. to make a movie about Human torture and killing people or a Charlie Manson like character tries to provide solace to his victims families. Glad I was able to see it for free. Kudos to Ben and Mara putting their names behind this pretty sick subject. Without them it would have been really lame. Hope the director picks a more appropriate subject next time 3 rating mostly for the acting as the rest of the directing was pretty basic like a student film all shot in a few locations with terrible music.

Sure, we all know of Stockholm syndrome and how it can relate to victims of abuse. Sure, an abused person can be intensely and honestly enamored with the abuser. And finally, sure, a thirteen year old can be manipulative and flirty and even try to instigate an affair with an older man. However, none of the above even remotely excuses the abuser. If there were a movie about a 40 year old who somehow developed an intense crush on a 13 year old which he didn't act upon - sure, that movie could possibly be framed in such a way that it hopes to elicit sympathy for the tortured protagonist. However, the moment the protagonist of this movie became involved in sexual abuse of the 13 year old, any credible argument that excuses his behavior seizes to exist. There are reasons why this behavior is criminal. And I hope I don't have to spell them out. There is nothing to "reconsider" or "deconstruct" there; nothing that calls for bravery in order to be reevaluated. No. Sometimes an apple is just an apple, and a middle aged guy who beds a prepubescent girl is just a pedophile. The film tries to be smart in offering two possible lenses through which the action can be viewed: either you believe she was his only victim or you don't (drumroll: there's a hint in the title!) However, the film also obviously expects us to judge the protagonist differently in accordance with our chosen lens. But as I've said we can't. He's an abuser whichever way you look. And having an ambivalent stand about this does not only not make you a good dramatist it makes you a bad human. Other than that, the film is boring and pretentiously acted, lighted and scored, leaving you with the feeling that the play might have had some great dialogue that was its redeeming feature and that the filmmakers decided to cut and replace with something "more filmic" such as long gloomy contemplative sequences that are plain boring and self-serving.