Chariots of Fire (1981)

I had a bit of trouble for the first half-hour telling everyone apart and thought that Abraham's roommate was Liddell...totally wrong. I didn't put together that Liddell didn't attend Cambridge until rather late in the show – something about the bland faces and the blondeness of everyone except Abraham both bored and confused me. I also didn't like the way that remembered thoughts echoed aloud at turning points throughout the film. I found it a bit insulting, as though the director didn't trust us to remember key conversations. If he truly wanted to be helpful, he should have given us audible clues whenever a character came on screen, like "ah, yes, good ol' Lindsey...although he's a spoiled rich kid, we can't help but like him for his good humor and for being a fellow Cambridge man." The weird thing is, I'm not even sure my sarcastic explanation is accurate! After spending hours with these fellows, I still can’t tell them apart.

B