Uncovered is a 1994
thriller that originally came out in France in May starring Kate
Beckinsale, based off Arturo Pérez-Reverte's novel The Flanders
Panel. The lead character, Julia, an art restorer in Barcelona,
Spain stumbles upon a mystery through a five-hundred year old
painting and falls right in the middle of a mystery of her own as
everyone she comes in contact with turns up dead. Did she get Fox
Die or something? I should probably get it out of the way now that I
never read the book, so I'll be looking at the movie based on its own
merits.
Once upon a
time she could have played Arya Stark.
Julia's
parents died when she was young and ever since then she was raised by
her legal guardian, Cesar, albeit pronounced differently. A rather
charming old bloke who looks after her well into adulthood. Not much
is really said about Julia's past beyond that. She smokes, she's
loyal, and she sneezes every time she's confronted by intimacy.
She also
used to bang her old art teacher... because... why not? Apart from
that, she's a pretty straightforward character who takes her job
seriously and gets irritable around people she doesn't like. She
also smokes around and kisses five-hundred year old paintings. Oh,
but don't touch it because that's a step too far!
This is
Cesar, played by John Wood, and is without a doubt the best
character. He's just all around fun to watch and has the best
scenes. In one part of the movie he literally has someone by the
balls. He's also the only homosexual character in the movie, and to
its credit he doesn't come across as a gay stereotype. I guess the
United Kingdom was a lot better in their portrayals of homosexuals
than we were in the nineties. Or still are, for that matter.
You get
some backstory on him when Julia finds out he's related to the old
man who owns the painting where you learn he was kicked out of his
home for the crime of being gay. Something that's pretty relatable
for some and unfortunately is still something that's happening even
today.
Shame! Shame!
Shame! Shame! Shame!
This lovely
lady name is Menchu, Julia's boss. Her character traits can be
narrowed down to slutty and bitch. Surprise, surprise! You're
introduced to this character by Julia walking in on her being
serviced in her office. Huh, the man knows how to use his tongue.
Color me impressed.
I'm not trying to slut
shame or anything it's just... there's not much to talk about. She's
the boss, she's sleeping with a married man, you get the feeling
she's close with Julia and you see glimpses of a nice person, and
then she tries to screw her over because she spent a bunch of money
she didn't own in the hopes the sale of the painting would go
through. Didn't think that through, did you, lady?
Funny, I
think that's most kids' reaction to playing chess the first time.
Then we
have Domenec, the street rat turned professional chess player
who gets hired on to help solve the chess game. He's your laid back,
cool, doesn't care but at the same time kind of does that becomes
Julia's love interest. She sure did get over the art teacher fairly
quick.
The two do get some
screen time to bond a little bit, and it's not like the movie is
trying to pass them off as in love or anything. They just hook up
because... men who are kind of assholes are sexy? I don't know, I
just don't feel the least bit invested in their relationship. They
meet, they can't stand each other, they bond, then they have sex,
and now they're a couple. The end.
It's been
five centuries, dude, just make your move already!
Everything
that goes wrong in the movie is centered around this painting, a 1471
Flemish masterpiece called “La partida de ajedrez” which
translate to “The Chess Game.” The painting also contains the
words “Qvis Necavit Eqvitem,” Latin for “Who killed the
knight?”
The message was left
behind by the Duke, whose wife killed the knight after a secret
affair once it was in her best interest to do so. Since the Duke
couldn't accuse her publicly, he left the message in the painting to
be solved years later.
But he isn't the only
one using the chess game to send a message, as Cesar is also using it
to inform Juliet of his next moves setting it up for the reveal
where she learns he was the killer all along and forces her to shoot
him. Even making sure she has a gun on hand by making her believe
she was the next victim.
The mystery
around the painting and the chess game that predicts each move is
easily the best part of the whole movie. Cesar's motivations are all
about making sure Julia is provided for because he's dying, so he
kills everyone else so she can inherit... A mountain of dept! Why does nobody in this movie have any fucking foresight?!
There isn't
anything in terms of special effects in the movie. I don't know what
the budget is as there's little to no info on this film, so I'm just
going to assume it's low. Also, what is up with the music? I don't
usually comment on a movie's soundtrack, but this movie has a
reoccurring theme that sounds like the background music to the
bowling level from the 2002 Spider-Man game.
Overall, this isn't a
movie that holds up under repeat viewing. The first time I watched
this film I was immersed into the story and characters, but the
second time around? I noticed there really isn't much to the
characters at all. They're all bland and there's barely enough to
keep you interested apart from the mystery. What's the point of a
thriller without the thrill? Do yourself a favor and give this one a
miss.
Skip it
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