Friday, 29 July 2016

Sapphire Blue (4 Stars)


"All eternity depends on this moment".

This is the second film in the Ruby Red trilogy, based on the book with the same name by Kerstin Gier, It begins in 1602 with Gideon taking Gwendolyn to London to see William Shakespeare reciting poetry. After the recital they witness Gideon's ancestor Lancelot de Villiers being murdered by his grandson, the Count Saint-Germain, the founder of the Lodge, the secret organisation that uses time travel to guide history and save the world. This reinforces Gwendolyn's suspicions that the Lodge has sinister intentions. Unknown to her, the Count is Gideon's personal mentor. According to prophecies Gwendolyn will be the most powerful of all time travellers, and her death is necessary to save the world. The Count wants to control Gwendolyn, so he has asked Gideon to pretend to be in love with her, spinning her head by taking her to sumptuous balls and dinner parties over the last 400 years. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) Gideon really falls in love with Gwendolyn, but he is still devoted to the Count, so his loyalties are divided.

While Gwendolyn is visiting the Lodge in 1951 she bumps into her grandfather Lucas, who was a young cleric in the Lodge at the time. She tells him her suspicions about the Lodge, but he says he needs time to discover the truth for himself. He asks her to return in 1953, so she visits him the next day. He promises to give her the results of his investigations, but he doesn't want her to read them until after his death, so he hides them in a secure place and gives her a key. She finds his writings in a journal in 2010, but everything is written in code. Time travel ain't easy!

Of course, the film has paradoxes galore. While visiting 1948 Gideon sees Gwendolyn affectionately hugging his uncle Paul. Full of jealousy he tries to challenge her, but Paul knocks him unconscious and tells Gwendolyn that Gideon is an enemy who works for the Count. Back in 2010, Gideon demands an explanation, but Gwendolyn says that she doesn't understand it because for her it hasn't happened yet. Gwendolyn goes back to 1948 to speak to Paul, who tells her that he's her real father and gave her up for adoption to hide her from the Count. Gwendolyn hugs her father, which Gideon sees and misunderstands. But would she have gone back and hugged him at all if Gideon hadn't already seen her hugging him? My brain hurts!

That's only a brief overview of the plot. Not enough to accuse me to giving spoilers. I strongly recommend the film to anyone who likes supernatural teenage fantasies. Or just read the books, which have already sold millions of copies.


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