The Diva's
"Felicia's Journey" Review

Felicia's Journey (1999)
Rated PG-13; approximate running time of 116 minutes
Written by: Atom Egoyan
Directed by: Atom Egoyan
Starring: Bob Hoskins, Arsinee Khanjian, Eliane Cassidy, Sheila Reid and Ali Yassine.
Genre: Thriller

WARNING - SPOILERS BELOW.

The Digest

Okay. I'm going to try and explain this... this... this... "Film" I saw.

Joey Hilditch (Bob Hoskins) is a chef for an industrial factory. Through flashbacks we find out that his mother was a famous French chef with her own television show in the 50's. Joey is also has a secret. He victimizes people, but I won't tell you how. It's a huge spoiler. The thing is; that no one knows that his victimizing women, because he picks his victims very carefully. He picks girls that no one will miss. You don't even find out that he is has an "issue" until halfway through the movie, and even then you never see him actually commit a crime.

Felicia (Elaine Cassidy) is a nice Irish girl who has fallen in love with a nice Irish boy. He leaves Ireland to find work in England. He tells her that he works at a lawn mower factory. The truth is that he actually joined the British army, which is a big no-no if you are Irish. Felicia finds out that she's pregnant and travels to England to find him and tell him. She shows up in England with nothing but a nap sack and some cash. Big dummy!

Along the way she crosses paths with Hilditch. He befriends her and begins to manipulate and control her. He steals her money so she has to stay with him. This eventually leads to him attempting to kill her. He lets her go after a bizarre encounter with a Black woman who is a Jehovah's Witness. She gets him to let go of his demons after which he does something unthinkable.

This was the weirdest movie that I've ever seen.

The Dish

I saw this movie about 2 weeks ago. It's taken me this long to get the energy to write about it.

Children, I want you to think long and hard for a few minutes about someone you dislike with a passion. This is the person you wouldn't spit on if they were on fire. This is the same person for whom you should buy four tickets to see "Felicia's Journey".

This was the most mind-numbing waste of celluloid that I've ever come across. There are some critics out there raving about this film. They are giving it four stars. Don't listen to them! Run! You will be begging for your 90 minutes and your money back. Trust "The Diva" on this one. I was in a theater with 300 folks. Two, count 'em, two people thought this was a good movie. The rest of us were ready to confess our crimes and beg for forgiveness, as long as we didn't have to see this movie again.

The Directive

Save yourself the grief unless you appreciate torture.

This movie sucked.