Lack of good storyline.

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

There are many things I did not know in this movie. I learned "Old man and sea" in my high school and I barely knew Hemingway spent his life in Cuba for a while. However, I did not know Hemingway was involved in the civil war in Cuba and he committed suicide. It may be common sense to some people, but people who did not grew up in the U.S. do not know about it. I did not know Ed Myer either. The relationship Ed Myer and Hemingway was complicated. Ed Myer looked for his father figure in Hemingway, but I did not think they bulit that kind of relationship because Hemingway misunderstood Ed and punched his face. Their acting does not show what kind of relationship Ed and Hemingway really had. Hemingway also had a difficult relationship with his wife. Whenever Mary talked about her successful career in the past, Hemingway looked offended. Mary said " I love you"to him and papa looked pleased, but it did not fit the story. In reality, Hemingway committed suicide anyway. Around the complicated emotion and Hemingway's depression were not acted well. Ed myer and his girlfriend were having difficult time and Ed Myer had doubts about a relationship or a woman. Then suddenly, he decided to marry her. The girlfriend was angry, but she was kissing him. That part was happening too sudden. So I gave the movie 6 not 7.

I really wanted to like this film as I am a Hemingway fan like many people. I read a few reviews that trashed the film and then I came across one that said "I don't know why all the bad reviews" and that was enough for me to download a check it out. The film started OK. I like Ribisi (Sneaky Pete)and Minka Kelly is simply beautiful but from there it goes down hill. If they had shown Cuba (ala Woody Allen New York/Rome/Paris etc) it would have been more watchable but they didn't and it wasn't.The acting. Oh my goodness, to say it was wooden would be the understatement of the 21st century. The worst of the bunch is the guy that plays Hemingway. I've never seen or heard Hemingway in real life but I can't imagine he was the passionless bore he seemed to be. Maybe not a fair criticism but I like the way Hemingway was portrayed in Midnight in Paris. Halfway or so through the film, there is a get together and a confrontation of sorts between EH and his wife...here is where you get bad acting at it's finest. Ribisi seemed out of place but I believe that is more a product of a poorly written story than his skill set.The story. How bad is it? Let me count the ways. Never mind, I have better things to do. How this is rated above "3" is beyond me.

I can't say this is a great movie, but I don't know why the critics were so hard on it - currently 8% on by Metacritic professional critics. Hemingway had a long and adventuresome life, and this movie captures the last year he spent at his Cuban estate, Finca Vigia. The beautiful, sprawling, gated estate had been a source of comfort for Hem through two divorces, multiple wars, and the withering of his talent. By 1959, Hem's cumulative emotional distress is mirrored in Cuba's political unrest, and the film captures that quite perfectly.Giovanni Ribisi as Hemingway's new, young writer friend is more toned down that he is in other amped-up roles, and Adrian Sparks effectively becomes Hemingway; it's hard to believe it isn't him in many scenes. Joely Richardson was a terrific foil, moving through the turbulence of their marriage minute by minute, showing the deep love she had for him but also the anger she had at his drunken antics. The film had some very nice touches, like the poly-dactyl cat in a very brief scene; Hemingway loved poly-dactyls in his later years. I felt the movie was fairly well-paced and beautifully filmed. The drama around -- no spoilers -- some government issues was a little out of left field tone-wise, but otherwise I found it a rather lovely little picture, an admirable tribute to a great writer and a flawed man with a lasting legacy.

Went into this anticipating intriguing true story providing some insights into the revered author. Was initially put off by the embarrassing performances of Papa and especially Mary Hemingway characters, but eventually realized they were provided with a dreadful trite script and were just battling their way through it under vacuous direction. Not being drawn into the story, I had plenty of time to notice the comically inept directing and editing. Amateurish disconnects, visual glitches, motivational and logical inconsistencies, silly scoring, etc. etc. My companion said it had the feel of a Lifetime movie, but I think that is generous because this was a greater waste of talent and potentially interesting material.