Never Let Me Go -- Film Review

10:09 PM PDT 10/14/2010 by Stephen Farber

TELLURIDE -- Mark Romanek's "Never Let Me Go" is definitely an art object, but is it a work of art?

Expertly acted, impeccably photographed, intelligently written, even intermittently touching, the film is also too parched and ponderous to connect with a large audience. Fox Searchlight is hoping for awards consideration for the adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's acclaimed novel, but this will depend on the reviews, which are likely to be split between those who consider the film a bleak masterpiece and others who find it straining so mightily for aesthetic perfection that it fails to provide a gripping narrative. In any case, the downbeat nature of the material will prove a challenge at the box office.