Comes A Bright Day

A Hybrid Comedy/Romance/Heist That Struggles To Balance An Effective Tone Despite A Great Cast
I was pretty excited to have discovered the British comedy/romance/heist film "Comes A Bright Day" by Simon Aboud. With an appealing cast and an unorthodox set-up, the film has limitless potential. I thought I would absolutely love this quirky film as its ideas and themes really struck my interest. But, alas, there's something a bit off in the telling. In many ways, I thought the screenplay tried to cover too many bases and the film's tone is ever-shifting. It's not really a comedy, it's not particularly a romance, it's not quite believable as an action endeavor, and it falls a bit short as a character study. It is simultaneously all of these things and none of them! I well and truly hate when people say "I really wanted to like" something--but, in this case, I really wanted to like "Comes A Bright Day." And yet, it never really connected with me in any tangible way. The situations never merge well and the characters speak in philosophical pontification, so the end result...

Smart Thriller with a Ton of Heart
I absolutely loved this movie. I had no idea what I was getting into when I turned it on, and was pleasantly surprised. "Comes a Bright Day" is a bank heist movie that is not told like a typical bank heist movie. Sure, there is action and violence, but there is so much more. The film centers on five main characters (two robbers and three hostages) who are thrust together after an attempted heist of a jewelry store goes terribly wrong.

The story focuses more on the characters than the dangerous situation they find themselves in, yet you are never allowed to forget that their lives could end at any moment.

I was caught up in the direction--the film was wonderfully shot. It was also hard to not get caught up in the beautiful Imogen Poots, who I hope to see in many films to come. She was stunning -- both in beauty and in her quiet, powerful performance.

"Comes a Bright Day" has it all -- action, crime, humor, love, loss, and coming-of-age romance. If you...

Was hoping for more
This movie needed more development of its characters. Kevin McKidd created an interesting character and his performance was excellent. His character hinted at an interesting past. However, other than having problems communicating with people because of a stutter, we never know what led his character to be the person he became. I wanted to like this movie more but couldn't help wanting more depth to the characters.

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