10 Awesome Performances In Otherwise Awful 2017 Movies
9. Christoph Waltz – Tulip Fever
Set in 17th century Amsterdam at the height of
tulip mania, Tulip Fever stars Alice Vikander as orphan bride Sophia who is
locked in a loveless marriage with Christoph Waltz’s wealthy merchant Cornelis
and falls in love with the brooding artist (Dane DeHaan) her husband hires to
paint her. Cue lots of bodice-ripping and bosom-heaving sex.
Admittedly, the movie looks great in its period design but its plot – which also includes a pretend pregnancy, a faked death and Zach Galifianakis drunkenly eating a tulip bulb – is too much and manages to be boring somehow despite all that’s going on.
Christoph Waltz, however, is blooming (excuse the pun) marvellous as per usual bringing both a sense of menace and pathos to his role as the movie’s multifaceted, not-so-villainous villain. It’s just a shame that the rest of Tulip Fever doesn’t live up to the standard set by Waltz’s typically on form performance.