Reeling from a bad recent break-up, Daphne (Shailene Woodley) finds herself adrift in life. Living in her sister's guesthouse, she regularly witnesses her sibling and her brother-in-law fighting, which only exacerbates the once-idealistic Daphne's growing despair regarding long-term love. Then, at one of her sister's parties, Daphne meets Frank (Sebastian Stan) and Jack (Jamie Dornan). Both are enormously attractive to her, albeit in very different ways: one is the free-spiri... (Full plot summary below)
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Reeling from a bad recent break-up, Daphne (Shailene Woodley) finds herself adrift in life. Living in her sister's guesthouse, she regularly witnesses her sibling and her brother-in-law fighting, which only exacerbates the once-idealistic Daphne's growing despair regarding long-term love. Then, at one of her sister's parties, Daphne meets Frank (Sebastian Stan) and Jack (Jamie Dornan). Both are enormously attractive to her, albeit in very different ways: one is the free-spirited bad boy, unpredictable, and always ready for adventure; the other is sober, intelligent, sensitive, and invested in his career as an academic. Unable to choose between these almost polar opposites, Daphne finds herself bouncing between them instead, enjoying the distinct ways each man sees her -- it's as though she's auditioning different versions of herself and the life that might be waiting for her. But fate has a way of making decisions for us, and the time soon comes when Daphne is forced to accept that having it all might just be a disguise for having nothing.
Leave your thoughts about Endings, Beginnings.
| Screen DailyWendy IdeThe latest from Drake Doremus is a candid, very watchable account of a messy period in a woman’s life. |
| IndieWireKate ErblandDaphne shouldn’t be this captivating, but with Woodley’s vulnerability and full-scale charm backing her up, Endings, Beginnings is able to capitalize on a seemingly thin premise. |
| Paste MagazineAmy AmatangeloBoredom. Annoyance. Anger. I experienced a range of emotions and perfected my eye roll while watching Endings, Beginnings, the new movie from director and writer Drake Doremus (Like Crazy). |
| TheWrapSteve PondEndings, Beginnings takes a young woman who tries to be in the corner but must find a way to train a spotlight on herself — and if you have to lean in to appreciate her journey, Doremus and Woodley make it rewarding if you do. |
| EmpireIan FreerA return to form for indie darling Drake Doremus, who brings his nuance, sensitivities and homespun feel to a formulaic love-triangle set-up. Jamie Dornan, Sebastian Stan and especially Shailene Woodley make it very watchable. |
| VarietyPeter DebrugeThe movie may be a self-help exercise of sorts — for those who seldom recognize themselves on screen, and who don’t measure up to the expectations set by rom-coms and princess movies — but it’s disguised as a shaggy character study. |
| Screen RantHannah HoolihanEndings, Beginnings favors style over substance, rarely igniting the spark its meant to and anchored only by a compelling Shailene Woodley. |
| Rolling StonePeter TraversThough the movie stalls frequently before it finds its balance, Woodley makes us care. |
| The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe writing might be a tangle of limp clichés, but the actors — especially Woodley and the terrific Wendie Malick as Daphne’s mother — sweat to sell every line. |
| Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenEndings, Beginnings has some genuinely engaging moments somewhere in between its beginning and its ending, but too much gets lost in a saggy, shaggy middle. |
