Sebastian Lelio‘s "Gloria Bell" is a remake of the director's 2013 film "Gloria," except this time he moves the story from his native Chile to the U.S.
It might be sacrilege to say this, but not only is this "shot for shot" remake a very good film, but it might actually be better than the original. Why? Well, because Lelio has matured as a filmmaker over these last 5 years, he's made this remake more emotionally relatable and affecting, but, more importantly, has improved the sketches of these characters because of the wonderful actors he's cast in his film.
Julianne Moore is the key to the remake's success, it might just be the actress' best performance since, what, quite possibly, 2002's "Far From Heaven"? Yep, she's that good, that raw, that emotionally resonant in the role of a middle-aged woman that makes the mistake of dating a troublesome schlub of a man (John Turturro).
This, of course, does not, in any way, discount the tremendous work by Paulina García in the original, I just think Moore is a more talented and capable actress and can bring out the kind of substance-filled heft in a role that about only half a dozen or so actresses in the entire industry can pull out of their hats. Another improvement is John Turturro's Arnold, Moore’s immature, daughter-obsessed boyfriend, originally played by Sergio Hernandez.
The soundtrack is also important, after all, the titular Gloria Bell loves to dance, and the kitschy, disco-driven soundtrack is effective in conveying a bittersweet mood to the overall tone of the film. The bittersweet simplicity of the movie in its honest depiction of loneliness and forgiveness made me smile to no end. [B+]