TENDERNESS

Ever since Gladiator, I find myself struggling to watch Russell Crowe films. I rarely enjoy watching him... and yet strangely I have watched two in a row. lol. Tenderness is a surprising film. I would normally get the sense that Crowe feels that he is above a low budget indie movie like this, but Tenderness proves me wrong, although I from what I read he only agreed to it on the provision that his character is given more screen time and a narration. Regardless, its a solid film. A kid is released from juvenile detention (he murdered his parents) with his prior convictions dissolved. A 16 year old girl who is besotted with him from newspaper headlines and a previous brief encounter worms her way into his life. The two of them drive across country, she desperate for his affection and he eager to lose her. Russell Crowe plays an ageing cop who is convinced that the kid is actually a psychopathic serial killer and follows his every move. This is a slow, meandering and psychological film which gradually builds tension really well. All actors are great and the few twists and turns with each character are unexpected. I found the vibe to be a sort of cross between 'We Need To Walk About Kevin' and 'Kalifornia'. Well worth seeing but definitely requires patience.

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