Stillwater                             2 stars

Many of us remember the case of Amanda Knox, the young American woman who was held in an Italian prison for several years for the murder of her Italian roommate and was ultimately exonerated of the crime by an appeals court.  The movie Stillwater, written and directed by Tom McCarthy borrows heavily from that case, so much so that for a while I thought it really was about the case. Unfortunately, the movie only uses some elements of the Knox case, building instead a slow moving drama turned thriller about an Oklahoma father who travels to Marseilles, France to pursue a lead in the case against his daughter who has been serving a sentence for murder. The movie has outstanding performances by Matt Damon as the fish out of water American who looks more like Josh Brolin, Camille Cottin, the French mother who takes an interest in his predicament and offers her assistance, and Abigail Breslin as the imprisoned daughter. Eventually, the story takes an unlikely turn that stretches the viewer’s ability to believe the events on screen. I enjoy well written films about real life people that offer new insights into their circumstances and actions. And I enjoy thrillers that have original and unpredictable plots. This movie tries to be a blend of those two types of films and ultimately fails. I would understand how the real Amanda Knox would be very offended and frustrated by the release of this movie. Let’s hope that Tom McCarthy can return to movies like his previous successes Spotlight and The Station Agent.