Two out of
Five stars
Running time:
108 mins
Disappointing, badly overwritten drama from Woody Allen, rendered almost unwatchable by dreadful Cockney accents from McGregor and Farrell.
What's it all about?
Set in London, Woody Allen's latest film stars Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell as Ian and Terry, two East End brothers who have big plans for the future. When Ian meets the girl of his dreams (Hayley Atwell as Angela), he starts saving money in order to move to California with her and invest in a chain of hotels.
However, Ian's plans are scuppered when Terry's gambling debts catch up with him, landing them both in financial trouble. Then rich Uncle Howard (Tom Wilkinson) arrives and makes them an offer: he'll pay off Terry's debts and fund Ian's dreams if they'll murder his business rival, Martin Burns (Phil Davis).
The Good
That said, two things rescue the film from one-star ignominy: the always-reliable Tom Wilkinson and a lovely performance by Sally (Happy-Go-Lucky) Hawkins as Terry's sweet-natured girlfriend. Similarly, the film picks up a bit for a decent finale but by then you'll have ceased to care.
You can also amuse yourself by playing Spot Tamsin Outhwaite, as she has a blink-and-you'll-miss-it part as Martin's girlfriend, though you never actually see her face.
The Bad
Essentially, Allen is reworking the same territory he covered in Crimes and Misdemeanours, so you never feel like you're watching something new. However, the film's biggest problem is the pair of appalling accents sported by McGregor and Farrell – they sound like they learned Cockney from watching Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins.
It also doesn't help that the script is horribly overwritten, meaning that both lead characters never shut up, which is even more of a problem when the accents are this bad. In addition, the plot is annoying because you don't feel that either of them are desperate enough to commit murder.
Worth seeing?
In short, Cassandras Dream is something of a disappointment, thanks to an overwritten script, an unconvincing plot and painful performances from McGregor and Farrell.