I'm a bit torn about Two Wives, because it feels like it gets a little too complex narratively at some points, but early on, the dialogue feels way too on the nose and obvious. The film feels like it spells certain things out too much (though that could be a result of subtitling; it's hard to know whether or not it's more subtle if you speak Japanese), and then also feels like it rushes a bit, which makes other parts confusing.
Maybe it overextends itself, and the dialogue's blunt to make up for that, but it's also still a decent enough film, even with those flaws. When it's working, it feels moderately successful as a complex and narratively twisty melodrama, and I think the performances are solid. It looks nice, sounds nice, and thankfully isn't too long. I didn't love it from a writing perspective (those flaws come close to tanking the film at points), but Two Wives is still alright at the end of the day.
Maybe it overextends itself, and the dialogue's blunt to make up for that, but it's also still a decent enough film, even with those flaws. When it's working, it feels moderately successful as a complex and narratively twisty melodrama, and I think the performances are solid. It looks nice, sounds nice, and thankfully isn't too long. I didn't love it from a writing perspective (those flaws come close to tanking the film at points), but Two Wives is still alright at the end of the day.
