If I would use one word to describe "Limbo," it would be: interesting. However, if I would throw in a second word to describe this film, it would probably be: slow. This is a well made and good looking film taking place in boring Alaska. Not much happens there and everyone seems occupied with their businesses. The main character, Joe, is a mellow guy partially detached from the community. Years ago, he was involved in a boat accident where two of his friends drowned. He hasn't been the same since. He has no friends, but begins a relationship with the outgoing Donna, a singer. It turns out that her daughter Noelle, closer in character to Joe, has always had a crush on her mother's new boyfriend. One day, Joe's stepbrother comes into town and asks Joe for help. He needs Joe to sail with him to meet some "customers." It is obvious that the stepbrother is in some sort of trouble, but keeps Joe in the dark about everything so Joe decides to bring Donna and Noelle along for the trip. One night, when Joe catches his stepbrother watching their surroundings nervously, he forces him to explain everything. As his nervous behavior and sudden need for Joe implied, the stepbrother has been involved in some "illegal" activities and owes a lot of money. He took Joe along for the trip to help him sort everything out. It turns out that the people the stepbrother was dealing with are not the reasonable type. Without revealing too much plot, the situation becomes serious as the group is forced to abandon ship and flee from those "customers" that Joe's stepbrother talked about.
All the elements slowly led up to this interesting point in the film. As expected, there is some suspense. As Joe, Donna, and Noelle hide on a secluded island with no means of communication, they realize that their lives have been totally messed up, without them ever knowing of any danger. So they try to survive. But the film loses the suspense it built up. Instead it focuses more on character development. It dwells on the mother-daughter relationship and their problems. The movie brings out Joe's and Noelle's characters and contrasts them with Donna's. The personalities of the protagonists are an essential part of the movie, but it seems that the film abandons its tone at times to develop those personalities. When you think the suspense will pick up, "Limbo" slows down again to focus on its characters. It doesn't do it poorly, in fact it does it well most of the time, but after a while it seems too much and too slow. It all works well in the end, however, because the ending reflects the attitudes and behaviors that have been built up until that point. All the characters have been hurt in some way, but because of their history they have learned to look at things in a different way. The ending is very good and very interesting. It perfectly compliments the feelings of the characters, but the question is which characters are right. It addresses the issue of positive thinking vs. negative thinking. Who do you trust, and what will happen as a result? It also depends on the way the person watching the film thinks.
This is a good film. The character development is done well to make this highly interesting ending work. The acting is not excellent, but good. Even though the point of the film is to focus on personalities rather than suspense, it lags at times. I felt it needed a little more life. "Limbo" is a good film that may just be a bit too slow for most people. Overall a 7 out of 10.
All the elements slowly led up to this interesting point in the film. As expected, there is some suspense. As Joe, Donna, and Noelle hide on a secluded island with no means of communication, they realize that their lives have been totally messed up, without them ever knowing of any danger. So they try to survive. But the film loses the suspense it built up. Instead it focuses more on character development. It dwells on the mother-daughter relationship and their problems. The movie brings out Joe's and Noelle's characters and contrasts them with Donna's. The personalities of the protagonists are an essential part of the movie, but it seems that the film abandons its tone at times to develop those personalities. When you think the suspense will pick up, "Limbo" slows down again to focus on its characters. It doesn't do it poorly, in fact it does it well most of the time, but after a while it seems too much and too slow. It all works well in the end, however, because the ending reflects the attitudes and behaviors that have been built up until that point. All the characters have been hurt in some way, but because of their history they have learned to look at things in a different way. The ending is very good and very interesting. It perfectly compliments the feelings of the characters, but the question is which characters are right. It addresses the issue of positive thinking vs. negative thinking. Who do you trust, and what will happen as a result? It also depends on the way the person watching the film thinks.
This is a good film. The character development is done well to make this highly interesting ending work. The acting is not excellent, but good. Even though the point of the film is to focus on personalities rather than suspense, it lags at times. I felt it needed a little more life. "Limbo" is a good film that may just be a bit too slow for most people. Overall a 7 out of 10.