It’s a worthy effort, and Woods pieces the parts together with skill and sensitivity. But, perhaps weighed down too heavily by its subject matter, Winged Creatures never takes flight.
Comment
07/06/09
Fragments (2009)
43
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:30
Fresh:13
Rotten:17
Average Rating:4.7/10
Consensus: Sensitive but not insightful, Fragments pieces an ensemble together in the same way Crash did but without the gravitas.
Synopsis: Kate Beckinsale, Dakota Fanning, Guy Pearce, Forest Whitaker, and Josh Hutcherson star as people whose lives change dramatically after they share in a traumatic event at a diner. Based on the novel... [More]
Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Guy Pearce, Dakota Fanning, Forest Whitaker
Director: Rowan Woods
Reviews for Fragments
Top CriticConsidering the talent involved in Winged Creatures, it's a pity that the movie never manages to fly above your average Hallmark drama.
07/07/09
Top CriticThere's a miserable sense of a country that's terminally sick in the head and spirit. It's a tiresome idea, no matter how well the actors play it.
07/17/09
Top CriticPlaying God, faith and doubt are the central themes of Rowan Woods' Winged Creatures, an engaging but often frustrating film in which beginnings and endings are intertwined
07/04/09
Top CriticEach character's unique journey towards processing their shared horrific experience is handled with sensitivity and honesty.
07/08/09
Top CriticAs an examination into the way trauma affects different people it’s intriguing yet at times rather baffling.
07/08/09
Top CriticIt is intriguing, the premise. But, in fact, you're not given quite enough access to situations or characters to really get an involvement with the film.
07/08/09
Top CriticAn unconventional film in which traditional story resolutions (plural because several would be needed) are not forthcoming
07/04/09
Top CriticI'm making it sound very grim and depressing, but miraculously it's not. The interlocking sections are beautifully constructed, and in a large and notable ensemble cast, the performances are vivid and convincing. The children are especially good.
07/17/09
Top CriticVividly conveys the sorrow and suffering brought into the lives of five individuals by a man with a gun and his act of random violence.
07/31/09
The casting directors of Fragments deserve credit for assembling so much talent in one modest movie; if only Rowan Woods, the director, knew what to do with them.
07/31/09
Top CriticEven as it makes a show of complexity Fragments seems determined to pull together its various story strands.
08/06/09
The hell that Paul Haggis hath wrought grows exponentially by the day.
07/30/09
With some poor casting and more actions than insights, Winged Creatures is indeed a bird that fails to fly, but not quite a turkey.
07/12/09
Top CriticRowan Woods indulges in some sub-subpar Crash territory here, with a laughably self-serious narrative that has less to do with reality than histrionics.
08/01/09
[A] well acted ensemble piece that I think you should see.
08/10/09
The film is quite literally fragmented. Too much story -- and too little about each character.
08/10/09
A well-directed tense drama with a terrific cast, it is an old-fashioned, no-nonsense film with no special effects that relies on acting and script.
08/07/09
Despite its very impressive lineup, this film is full of inconsistencies and moves at a slow pace. So many performances are wasted.
07/31/09
Frierich's hook is, well, killer. And Woods is patient with his story, letting small glances and tiny actions speak volumes.
07/31/09
Latest News for Fragments
July 30, 2009:
Critics Consensus: Funny People Is Ambitious But Uneven
This week at the movies, we've got the tears of a clown (Funny People, starring Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen), extra-terrestrial visitors upstairs (Aliens in the Attic, starring... More...
July 29, 2009:
Trailer and pics to 'Fragments,' formerly known as 'Winged Creatues' with Kate Beckinsale, Guy Pearce, Dakota Fanning, Forest Whitaker, Embeth Davidtz, Jennifer Hudson, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and Josh Hutcherson 
More...
July 07, 2009:
Director Rowan Woods Talks Winged Creatures
It's been a roundabout sort of homecoming for Australian filmmaker Rowan Woods. The director, who made his name with the critically-praised local movies The Boys (1998) and... More...
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