Collateral Beauty

An interesting idea, ruined by a director who's going straight for shameless sentimentality. That shouldn't be too big of a surprise considering Frankel's history, but usually he sticks to filming pretty basic genre films that don't aspire to be anything more than big budget filler. Collateral Beauty is a little different.

The premise at least was pretty interesting. Three friends/colleagues are trying to save a man who slipped into a depression after his daughter died. They do that by hiring a trio of actors to play love, death and time, the three abstract concepts that form the cornerstone of his take on life. But bringing him back to the real world turns out to be more difficult than expected.

Performances are decent, though Smith, Knightley, Peña and Winslet all struggle to make a real impression. Frankel's heavy-handed and garish direction doesn't make it any easier for them. The drama never really hits home and the execution of the premise lacks creativity and vision. Somewhat disappointing.