First Hit: Unforgettable was completely forgettable. The beginning is OK, there is some suspense with Julia Banks (Rosario Dawson) leaving her job, packing up and heading to Los Angeles from San Francisco. There are questions in her expression as her best friend and former boss gently nudges her about how she’s feeling. Her friend continues to reaffirm that Julia is always welcome back to San Francisco. This seemed to set up that Julia is wounded from her past.
We learn that Julia has been a battered woman, and her two-year restraining order on her ex-boyfriend, Michael Vargas (Simon Kassianides) who is out of jail for his past actions, is ended. She’s headed to LA because she met and fell in love with David Connover (Geoff Stults). David has a wonderful daughter named Lily (Isabella Kai Rice) who is the result his broken and difficult marriage with Tessa (Katherine Heigl). When Julia and Tessa meet, it is obvious that there is something not quite right with Tessa.
Tessa still pines for David and will do anything to get David back, and this sets up the most mechanical, predictable back and forth confrontation between Julia and Tessa, with Lily and David being the foils they use.
Each scene is predictable, whether it be in the police station when Julia is being interviewed, when Tessa demands that Lily act a particular way in front of everyone, and when David trying to keep the peace between all of them.
I don't like when there are scenes in films that have no closure, don't add to the film's plot or direction, or are forgotten about as the film moves along. If you're going to put a camera on it, then make sure it is complete, has value or gets completed later in the film.
One such scene is seeing Julia carefully pack her suitcase, put the suitcase on the roof of the car. During her trip to LA, the suitcase falls off and her clothes scatter. This includes a special hat given to her by her best friend. We never get closure on this and we're left with lots of questions. Did she care about losing all her clothes? Did she care about the hat? Where did she get clothing when she got to LA?
As the film moves along and suspense winds up, I became more disinterested. It was taking way too long to create suspense and it was way too probable.
Dawson was OK as the battered woman trying to make her life better and embrace a positive relationship. Thought that her dialogue with Lily was really strong and created an effective relationship building sequence. Heigl was very effective as the slightly twisted, controlling and uptight woman who’s past reflected her character. Stults was OK and I don’t know if the part was bland or he was bland. It just seemed that he would have had more energy towards what was transpiring. Rice was perfect. She showed this by the different ways she acted towards and reacted to Julia and Tessa. Kassianides was very effective as stalker. Christina Hodson and David Leslie Johnson wrote this screenplay. Although there seemed to be enough material, it seemed either overwritten or poorly conceived. Direction by Denise Di Novi was in error for being mechanical in its presentation. Meaning, nothing was surprising. Additionally, Di Novi was in error for trying to put too much into the film and move away from; saying more with less.
Overall: I couldn’t wait for this film to end.