She Came to Me – A Dramedy That Exists in the Minimum

On paper, She Came to Me has everything one could ever need for a successful and entertaining film; a knotted love story steeped in second (or third) chances, a stellar cast featuring Anne Hathaway, Peter Dinklage, Marisa Tomei, Brian d’Arcy James and more, and the perceived correct blend of comedy and drama within a realistic setting. In theory, the film should be an easy win. But in reality, as all of these components came together to create its final product where something essential seemed to be missing and something the film itself attempts to address thematically – passion.

She Came to Me focuses on Steven Lauddem (Dinklage), an opera composer suffering from crippling anxiety and writer’s block. At the request of his wife, Patricia (Hathaway), he is sent in search of serenity after his comeback opera has debuted and he is struggling to accept the accolades. Upon his adventure, he meets Katrina (Tomei), a local tugboat operator, who is swept up in the value of romance and its effect on life and tries to impart her experiences to Steven. The two engage in a one-night stand which leads to the reignition of Steven’s passion for his profession while being unsure of the positive effect that Katrina has had on his life. Additionally, Steven’s stepson, Julian (Evan Ellison) and his girlfriend, Tereza (Harlow Jane), pursue a long-term future with one another in spite of major resistance from Tereza’s parents which put their relationship in jeopardy.

While the dramatic elements are front and center for most of this film, the warmth, love and passion are much less so which is disappointing considering these are the thematic tentpoles of the film. As characters, both Steven and Patricia offer nothing of depth which prevents audiences from empathizing with their situation and investing in their growth as we see it unfold resulting in a disjointed narrative and rushed final act that does its best to tie up all existing threads in a positive manner but expects too much from its audience at that point after offering little in return. In short, it manifests as squandered potential that were if in more deft hands would have produced a story that could quickly have its audience buy into its character’s difficulties and shortcomings while rooting for them as they are offered the opportunity to grow and change out of them.

This aforementioned void within the narrative begins at the script level which, at times, has moments of beauty and true meaning, but ultimately succumbs to delivering a bland and uneventful return with the exception of the film’s final act. Dinklage turns in a solid performance but nothing that is truly demanding of someone of his caliber. Steven emotes rather than gives voice to his feelings, but it is something that severely undercuts his performance and relegates him to becoming more of a narrative usher from main to side story and back again. Hathaway’s Patricia suffers almost more than Steven as for the majority of the film, audiences only see her in control of her situation, no matter the cost until she is broken by it, but there are no hints at the buildup within her only a zero to sixty reveal which delivers one of the more memorable scenes of the film but it is delivered too late to achieve the desired impact.

In the end, She Came to Me should have been an easily achievable exploration of realistic characters at various points in their lives experiencing or finding love in different ways that feel disconnected but are somehow threads of the same rope that binds us. Instead, it is a film that exists in the minimum with flashes of intrigue that offer false promises in spite of achieving a satisfying conclusion.

still courtesy of VVS Films

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Critics w/o Credentials

Trying my best to get all thoughts about TV and Film out of my head and onto the interweb.