This year, I got to see a lot more of Laura Linney‘s work. I first became familiar with her in one of my favorite films, The Truman Show (1998). Over the years, I saw her in Mystic River, Love Actually, and The Nanny Diaries. But it wasn’t until this year that I saw her live in the play, Time Stands Still on Broadway. It wasn’t until this year that I saw her on television, leading the new Showtime hit series, The Big C. And it wasn’t until last month that I saw her in the film, The City of Your Final Destination which is now available on DVD.

Release Date: August 17, 2010
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 118 minutes

28-year-old Kansas University doctoral student Omar Razaghi has won a grant to write a biography of Latin American writer Jules Gund. Omar must get through to three people who were close to Gund – his brother, widow, and younger mistress – so he can get authorization to write the biography.

I’ve said all of this to say that Laura Linney made this film bearable. Yes, the entire cast was fantastic, but even a fabulous ensemble cast and beautiful setting of Argentina could not get me hooked to this film. This is very much a character driven film and while I love characters, the dull tone distracted me from appreciating the characters as much as I wanted to. The slow moving plot and dull dialogue also did not win me over. Don’t get me wrong, the story is sweet and will have you rooting for aspiring writer, Omar to get permission from the estate of a late famous author to writer his biography. Though the plot is dragged out and the ending is quite clunky and odd. Linney’s character, Caroline is infamous for saying “no” whenever she can. If I were to answer “yes” or “no” if asked if I would watch this film again, I would say “no.” The aesthetics are not enough for me, but if they are for you, there is more to check out in the special features.

Special Features:

Select Scenes with Commentary (25:45 minutes) – If you made it all the way through the film and enjoyed what you watched, than you may appreciate the select scenes with commentary. If you did not enjoy the film very much, the commentary will not help you like the film more. The commentary is quite boring and dry. Honestly, I found myself losing interest in what was being discussed after the first five minutes. Viewers will gain some insight into the behind the scenes of filming but not enough to make you appreciate the film more.

Behind the Scenes: Sorting It Out in Ocho Rios (19:51 minutes) – This feature takes viewers behind the scenes of filming in Argentina from 2006 – 2007. Director, James Ivory as well as the cast and crew talk about working on the film. Though I am not particularly a fan of the film, I did find this feature to be quite intriguing. Argentina is so beautiful and no matter how much I did not enjoy the film, the working environment is just too beautiful to turn away from. The cast is fantastic and the crew was incredibly hard working as well, so to see different points of view discuss filming, it was enjoyable. If you have 20 minutes to spare, I would suggest watching this feature over the other.

Own The City of Your Final Destination on DVD today.