Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Touches You

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

An aging lothario professor seduces recently-graduated students one by one. However, he is undone my a mature Cuban-American student, whose beauty, sensuality and love expose his vulnerability. There is much to admire here, notably the performances by the two leads. Kingsley plays the academic as stiff and contained, a perfect interpretation of a man fighting to maintain control of his emotions, and losing badly. Cruz is magnetic, bringing depth and nuance to a role that could have been exploitative. Unfortunately, other elements of the process are not up to par. The framing and composition are flat and unremarkable. Dialogue is often stilted, as if translated directly from another language. The father-son relationship seems false from the get-go, and lacks coherence in the way it evolves. Having a character declare in the final third that they have a life-threatening disease is shoddy and amateurish writing. This is a plausible portrayal of male mid-life crisis, and more noteworthy, female devotion and love. Given a better supporting context, this film could have been so much more.

David Kepesh (Ben Kingsley) is a New York cultural critic. He is a dedicated bachelor with only non-committal carnal relationships. George O'Hearn (Dennis Hopper) is his best friend and Carolyn (Patricia Clarkson) is his sexual hookup. As a criticism professor, he becomes attracted to his student Consuela Castillo (Penélope Cruz). He develops a deeper relationship than he initially expected.These are great actors and I really want to love this. David is a head-scratcher character. I can't really get over his May-December romance and he's the reluctant one. It's not only that I don't empathize with him. I don't like him either. The tension depends on how much one wants them to get together. I simply don't care if he figures it out. If he doesn't, he doesn't deserve her.

It's quite slow-paced- perhaps a bit too slow-paced- but the film does have its charms.Ben Kingsley plays David Kepesh, an ageing lecturer who seduces his students. His mid-life crisis is quite tragic to watch, as he pushes away twenty-four-year-old mature student Consuela (Penelope Cruz), despite their love for each other.This is a nice tale about age-gap relationships and whether they can ever work, and about the attempts to find love and settle down when you're in your fifties. The ending is a little melodramatic but the film's not a bad watch, even though the sight of Ben Kingsley topless is not something you'll really want to see.

David Kepesh(Ben Kingsley) is a professor with a really colorful personal life. After leaving his wife and son, he has a string of casual affairs. At a lecture he is giving, he meets Consuela(Penelope Cruz) and is smitten by her beauty. They start dating but Davey also has another girlfriend, a former student he has been seeing for 20 years. Consuela invites him to her graduation party so that he can meet her parents but he is afraid to meet them in addition to his commitment phobia, so he makes up an excuse to miss the party. Dave's best friend dies, his son has a blow out with him over the old mans infidelities and then admits to one of his own; like father, like son. Back to Consuela and more drama which becomes a little far fetched, most especially a ridiculous scene involving Dave and a camera; I'll just leave it there. The cast is superb but the ending silly, so it is a slight recommendation.