Moody 'Remember Me' revels in dark romance

"Remember Me" makes an easy target for criticism.

It's slow and slightly pretentious with "Twilight" star Robert Pattinson channeling James Dean, or at least James Franco channeling James Dean.

The ending might be too easy to anticipate. Maybe not.

"Remember Me" isn't for people who want easy-to-like, emo characters and formula plots with nice, tidy, fake happy endings.

It's a movie about loss and remembering. It reminds us we're on the planet for a short time, and loved ones can leave or be taken without warning.

It tells us to stay focused on the people we love and to do it now, and to keep doing it.

The movie doesn't deliver this message with any degree of subtlety.

It screams.

So if you're not in the mood for a dark movie where the characters take time to warm to each other, or where the plot reveals itself in deliberate, measured increments, skip "Remember Me." See something other than this romance between two lost souls.

As a child, Ally witnesses the murder of her mother on a New York subway platform in 1991.

Ten years later, Ally ("Lost" co-star Emilie de Ravin) is a student at a New York university where troubled Tyler Hawkins (executive producer Pattinson) also attends class.

He still carries the memory of his older brother who committed suicide in 1995. We assume that might be why his father, a high-powered Wall Street type (erstwhile 007 Pierce Brosnan) divorced his mother (Lena Olin) and has all but abandoned interest in Caroline (Ruby Jerins), his 11-year-old sister.

Tyler is a brooding, sloe-eyed soul with stylish stubble, a cigarette constantly dangling from his cracked lips, and a mop of impeccably tussled hair.

His irritating, always-on roommate, Aidan (Tate Ellington), never stops chattering or sputtering with comic relief. He could have ADD or maybe just be nervous. Yet, his character balances out Tyler so well, they seem to be a perfect match.

Tyler has a run-in with Ally's dad, a cop (Chris Cooper) with cocooned emotions, no doubt from his wife's murder. Aiden suggests Tyler date Ally and drop her as an act of revenge against her dad.

He does, but of course, they fall in love. Why not? They are united by bad daddy issues and personal losses. Unlike most movies, the characters don't allow those losses to define them or cripple them.

Also, under Allen Coulter's bold and consistent direction, their slow fuse of passion is one of the better renderings of screen romance I've seen in a while.

The first half of "Remember Me" - with the killing of Ally's mother - has been photographed in ugly, darkened hues of greenish grays and blues.

Watch what happens.

As the isolated, lonely characters slowly find common ground and begin to connect, Jonathan Freeman's cinematography shifts into blossom mode. Colors become saturated. Joyous. We see bright sunshine for the first time.

But remember the title and the dates, and what I said about fake happy endings.

Because the only real fun part of "Remember Me" is a clip from "American Pie" with Eugene Levy showing at the local Bijou.

And that's still not enough to cause Tyler to crack a smile.

"Remember Me"Rating: #9733; #9733; #189;Starring: Robert Pattinson, Emilie de Ravin, Chris Cooper, Pierce Brosnan, Lena OlinDirected by: Allen CoulterOther: A Summit Entertainment release. Rated PG-13 for language, sexual situations, violence. 113 minutes