It’s been 10 years since Francis Ford Coppola sat in director’s chair and make a motion picture, that is if you don’t count his attempted salvation of Supernova in 2000. But overseeing the whole operation from beginning to end – it’s been a while for the man that made his mark with the first two Godfathers and Apocalypse Now. But even great directors get rusty, and they sometimes also deliver duds. Coppola is no exception and I’m not just talking about The Godfather Part III. But Youth Without Youth does assuage some doubt as to whether of not Coppola can still find it.

The film is about an aging academic named Dominic (Tim Roth), who is in his late 70s when the film begins in 1938 Romania. When he’s hit by lightening, Dominic wakes up in the hospital and, despite his injuries, finds that he has de-aged by about 30 or 40 years. Not only that, but Dominic finds that he can absorb knowledge and learn new skills at an impressive rate of speed. Naturally, Dominic’s miraculous transformation makes him a subject of interest for both the Nazis and the Americans, but Dominic decides to stay underground until the war is over. From there, Youth Without Youth becomes a love story as Dominic meets a woman (Alexandra Maria Lara) that may be key to finishing his life’s work.

First, credit where credit is due: this is a great performance by Tim Roth who, being in every scene, finds the success of the film resting largely on his shoulders. This is juicy leading man stuff and Roth, who’s more typically known for playing the background supporting crazy, proves he’s more than up to the challenge. Through the strength of his performance, Roth is able to gently remind the audience that he is man out of synch with his time and doesn’t overplay his hand ever. I also loved the way he handled the scenes where Dominic engages with his disembodied subconscious; it’s very low key and the way Roth works doesn’t make it feel remotely gimmicky. I also liked the performance of Bruno Ganz as Dominic’s doctor.

As for Coppola’s technical prowess as it filmmaker, I have to say that it seems to have suffered none during his lengthy hiatus. Cinematographer Mihai Malaimare Jr does great work in capturing Coppola’s vision. Shot on a Sony HDC-F900 High Definition camera, the colours pop out at you all rich and vibrant, the difference in picture quality is definitely noticeable. And though the storyline is fairly dense and philosophical in nature, it’s not inaccessible. It is a beautiful looking and overall, a very well made film. Having said that though, I don’t think it’ll appeal to everyone and there are some narrative problems in the second half of the film.

The first part of the film does a fantastic job of weaving together personal drama, science fiction and espionage into a wonderfully executed movie with a compelling actor at the centre of the mystery. But while the actor stays the same into the second half, I found that the story loses pace and starts going through the motions. The love story just kind of happens, which is kind of unfortunate because there are some very compelling plot developments imroiled in how it resolves itself. There are also a couple of avenues that are never really explored thoroughly, like some kind of odd X-Men powers that Dominic displays at one point, and just what is this mysterious life’s work that Dominic’s been piecing together for years? Maybe I’m just thick, but I like to think I was paying attention.

All-in-all though, I think that Youth Without Youth is well worth seeing, as long as you acknowledge to yourself upfront that you are prepared for an unusual type of movie. While not Coppola’s best, it is certainly far from his worst and is certainly a smart step in the right direction for a filmmaking living legend. If I could afford a bottle of Coppola’s wine, I’d raise a glass to him…