THE LIFE BEFORE HER EYES

THE LIFE BEFORE HER EYES: BEAUTIFUL AND FULL

I'll be honest. This is a 2007 film that I never wanted to watch. Despite my love of Uma, and utter contempt for Evan Rachel Wood and never liked her acting beyond what she did in Thirteen; until now. There are too many ways to spoil the ending, so I tread lightly. Both actresses portray Diana; young and older. The younger Diana (Wood) is somewhat the typical teenager aside from some provocative tendencies. Her best friend, Maureen (Eva Amurri) is more naive than Diane, but they remain best friends. Then we meet "Diane", Uma Thurman who even though a little too easy to startle, seems like the younger Diane. After a while some strange things start to happen and Diana travels to her past in memory. From here on in, I stop. There are more flashbacks and with each one we discover why Diana is so jumpy. Uma Thurman was nothing less than remarkable. I can not recall a movie where she plays such a serious role. Surprisingly, Wood was also prepared for her role and did so in a not-too-obvious way. This is the only movie that I have seen that portrayed random high school violence and I felt it as the back of the hairs on my neck stand up.

BIG BITE: Very serious and sit on the edge of your seat kinda flick.