Mark Sedgwick

A confusing combination of science-fiction and overwrought moral-philosophical preening, Bliss ends up being a pretentious waste of time and talent. Who thought this script was worthy of filming? How much deliberation went in to the actual production process in order to achieve a cohesive end product? Did the filmmakers think the messy and convoluted story would somehow be “fixed” in the editorial stage? Some viewers mistakenly assess movies as contrived and hackneyed as this as “deep,” when in reality they are shallow and pointless. Don’t look for profundity here . . . the best you’ll find in Bliss is some good art direction and inspired location scouting efforts. Even the acting is confused: I’m not sure if the leads were given much direction, because they act as if their roles are a complete mystery to them. I guess they trusted the film makers, but that trust was misplaced. I sure hope the below-the-line crew got paid—otherwise this entire effort was a colossal waste of money.