“Tulip Fever” (Period Drama: 1 hour, 45 minutes)

Starring: Alicia Vikander, Dane DeHaan, Zach Galifianakis, Christoph Waltz and Judi Dench

Director: Justin Chadwick

Rated: R (Sexual content, violence and nudity)

Movie Review: The scenic views capture the colors of nice set designs. Grand stars make up the cast. The story appears unique. Despite those fine qualities, the movie fails to be the sum of its parts. 

Amsterdam during the 1630s is where orphaned Sophia (Vikander) compulsorily marries Cornelis Sandvoort (Waltz), a rich and powerful merchant. The marriage offers Sophia a life free of poverty, and it gives Cornelis a young wife that can provide him an heir, preferably a son. 

Enter struggling young artist Jan Van Loos (DeHaan), who is commissioned to paint Cornelis and Sophia. Jan and Sophia start a romantic tryst during the height of tulip fever, a time when the flower is a profitable commodity. The correct tulip bulb can make a person a tidy sum. Sophia and Jan plan to sell just the correct bulb to afford a new life where they are both free.

Dench, Vikander and Waltz are all Oscar recipients. Their talents do little to help this movie where the two main lovers played by Vikander and DeHaan lack chemistry. They are both beautiful people, but their onscreen relationship is uninspiring.

Deborah Moggach and Tom Stoppard’s script, an adaptation of Moggach’s novel, does not inspire one to care about and have an emotional attachment to the characters.

Justin Chadwick’s (“Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” 2013) direction adds little. He allows the story to bounce around without any smooth transitions between scenes. Chronological sequences appear null. Time passes without any noticeable occurrences occasionally.

Time passes quickly for audiences. The movie is not boring. It entertains enough to keep one’s attention. However, it is watchable as it is forgettable.

Grade: C (Neither beautiful as a tulip nor hot as a fever.)