The Moth Diaries

[caitlinmorton]

Lovely to see asamaic again, but slightly surprised to be ambushed by the two women. I had only read the first half of the book, and nothing had really properly happened yet, so not sure how much I really cleared up, lol. My favorite quote of the evening: "They all sort of talk like you do. Where are you from?" For those of you who haven't met me, I'm American, but have lived here for nearly five years now, so my accent is a bit funny. Sort of like Lily Cole's, although this does make sense, as [spoiler]she was supposed to have come in on a boat in 1907, and we can assume this is roundabout present day the film is taking place. I'd talk funny too! [/spoiler]
I didn't hate this nearly as much as I expected to. It was for the most part beautifully shot, and I thought Sarah Bolger did quite well. Lily Cole on the other hand I wasn't super thrilled by.

My main complaint, which I thought of on the tube home was that [spoiler]It was never established how she became a vampire, if we're assuming she actually was one, and it wasn't all in Rebecca's head. There was the line about vampires coming from those who died unseen, but then wouldn't Rebecca's dad have also become a vampire? This just confuses me a little.[/spoiler]
Also found it funny that they all wore the same nightgown which had to be from the early 1900s. Didn't know boarding schools were so strict about their sleepwear.

I think if they cleared everything up a bit more, it would actually be a really well done picture. Must find my copy of the book in order to see how it ends, I'm sure that will clear a bit up.

[McG]

I saw this in Paisley tonight with an audience of only 20.
I have to agree with stuartboy and asamaic . . . I didn't find it that bad though I did go in with VERY low expectations having read comments by others. Sure, it's not a horror film though it could be a good introduction to the genre for teenage girls . . . at least it won't give them nightmares! I don't really like horror films so was quite happy with the amount of scenes which could be thought of as horror! I agree that there are a number of unanswered questions and "holes" in the plot but I have definitely seen worse films!
So all in, not too bad a film with ok acting . . . glad it was free as I would never have pa*d to see it (because of the genre).
Marks 4/10

[Frank100]

Saw this on Sunday in an audience of 4. The fact that it only runs about 80 minutes is usually a sign that all is not well with a film, and sure enough, every scene seems to have been edited down as far as possible, as though everyone involved agreed the first cut felt too long and this was the only solution they could think of.

Well, it still feels pretty long, but at the same time the brevity means any attempt at building atmosphere is sacrificed. I also struggled to work out where it was supposed to be set (it's an Irish/Canadian co-production). There are a few eerie bits - Lily Collins looks right as a possible vampire/ghost but can't actually act for toffee - but it's all a bit of a misfire. Still, a (fairly) interesting failure is better than another Big Wedding.

[John Milton]

I'd just like to say thanks to everyone who posted about this film. Thanks to all your honest and frank reviews, the OH and I decided not to grab tickets for this! :)

[Spyder_Webb]

I really enjoyed this film more than I thought I would - having seen the IMDb stars rating. It really was nowhere near as bad as I was dreading.

We actually missed the first 12 minutes of the film because for some reason we had to exchange our printouts for actual tickets at the box office - this has never happened before with showfilmfirst tickets! - then the girl at the box office decided to radio through to 'someone' to ask if the film had started - even though we'd explained we didn't mind that we'd missed a few minutes. She said there were other guests already in there and she didn't want us to disturb them - I actually thought this was quite a nice touch because I admit latecomers can get annoying - but she said if we went in quietly it would be ok. So we did. And I'm pretty sure we didn't disturb the other 4 guests who were in the cinema (!).

Anyway we qucikly picked up the story despite this. I thought it was a well filmed piece of cinema and suitably eerie but wouldn't quite go as far to say it was horriffic! What was strange was the rapid pace - time seemed to flit past at an alarming rate - with large periods being skipped over between scenes. The characters would talk about 'last term' at the school, events which had taken mere seconds ago! I think that at 80 minutes long, there must've been a lot of editing and this is the reason for the kind of dis-jointed feeling to the film. There are also certain scenes included which just seem completely irrelevant to the plot or character development and their inclusion is a complete mystery. Wouldn't actually mind seeing a Director's Cut or extended version on DVD just to clarify a few matters which seem outstanding. The film seems to lead you to believe thet there's going to be a big reveal at the end - but that never comes and I guess it's possible to feel a little cheated afterwards. That said, I'm also glad it didn't spoonfeed the viewer with explanations - it leaves a lot open to interpretation - although I'm not exactly sure this was the intention.

All it all, better than expected and rather enjoyable.

5.8/10

[asamaic]

That said, I'm also glad it didn't spoonfeed the viewer with explanations - it leaves a lot open to interpretation - although I'm not exactly sure this was the intention.

I read a few book reviews and I suspect this was the case in the book as well... The ambiguity is what I liked the most about the film. It tried to do something interesting, and that's why I'd give it 4 out of 10 rather than, say, 2 out of 10. Wasn't a great film, but it wasn't by any means a car crash.

[FAITH2011UK]

After seeing the other reviews I was expecting a pretty bad film, however nothing could have prepared me for how bad this film was!

Very poor acting from Lily Cole and the storyline did not really make sense due to the bad editing.

2/10

[pizzakiller]

The movie was ok. Sarah Bolger was highlight of the movie. I think she did well. I am not sure what the story was about.
But glad it was not too long.

[jojojoanne]

I saw The Moth Diaries today. There were about 20 of us in Greenwich Odeon. I didn't hate the film, but I certainly wouldn't recommend anyone to go and see it. It's as if the script was written, like when you plan a story .. the scenes were each acted, but they didn't seem to flow into each other. It wasn't a wasted trip though .. all my buses ran well, the plumbing tape I needed in B&Q was half-price and I got a free coffee with my Costa card!! I'm so easily pleased!!!

[biggins]

Saw this today at the Odeon in Lothian Road, Edinburgh. My friend and I got our tickets from the guy on the popcorn who commented that he wouldn't p*y to see it so we were lucky getting to see it for free. A young couple came in so that made a total of four us who sat and watched it.

Enjoyed the trailers for Despicable Me 2 and World War Z. Said to friend if it is truly awful we will leave and go for a coffee but we thought it was actual better than expected and would give it a 4/10.