Watching this movie, it occured to me how very slender Hemingway's output really was. In short story output -- short stories being his main event -- writers like Joyce Carol Oates, John Updike surpass him in quality and output. They, however, shunned the spotlight although they did get their share of it

I really wanted to like this film as I am a Hemingway fan like many people. I read a few reviews that trashed the film and then I came across one that said "I don't know why all the bad reviews" and that was enough for me to download a check it out. The film started OK. I like Ribisi (Sneaky Pete)and Minka Kelly is simply beautiful but from there it goes down hill. If they had shown Cuba (ala Woody Allen New York/Rome/Paris etc) it would have been more watchable but they didn't and it wasn't.The acting. Oh my goodness, to say it was wooden would be the understatement of the 21st century. The worst of the bunch is the guy that plays Hemingway. I've never seen or heard Hemingway in real life but I can't imagine he was the passionless bore he seemed to be. Maybe not a fair criticism but I like the way Hemingway was portrayed in Midnight in Paris. Halfway or so through the film, there is a get together and a confrontation of sorts between EH and his wife...here is where you get bad acting at it's finest. Ribisi seemed out of place but I believe that is more a product of a poorly written story than his skill set.The story. How bad is it? Let me count the ways. Never mind, I have better things to do. How this is rated above "3" is beyond me.

I can't say this is a great movie, but I don't know why the critics were so hard on it - currently 8% on by Metacritic professional critics. Hemingway had a long and adventuresome life, and this movie captures the last year he spent at his Cuban estate, Finca Vigia. The beautiful, sprawling, gated estate had been a source of comfort for Hem through two divorces, multiple wars, and the withering of his talent. By 1959, Hem's cumulative emotional distress is mirrored in Cuba's political unrest, and the film captures that quite perfectly.Giovanni Ribisi as Hemingway's new, young writer friend is more toned down that he is in other amped-up roles, and Adrian Sparks effectively becomes Hemingway; it's hard to believe it isn't him in many scenes. Joely Richardson was a terrific foil, moving through the turbulence of their marriage minute by minute, showing the deep love she had for him but also the anger she had at his drunken antics. The film had some very nice touches, like the poly-dactyl cat in a very brief scene; Hemingway loved poly-dactyls in his later years. I felt the movie was fairly well-paced and beautifully filmed. The drama around -- no spoilers -- some government issues was a little out of left field tone-wise, but otherwise I found it a rather lovely little picture, an admirable tribute to a great writer and a flawed man with a lasting legacy.

Papa is lovingly photographed in Cuba where the story takes place in 1959, with an aging and depressed Ernest Hemingway, a Cuban revolution, and a young reporter who develops a relationship with Hemingway. Adrian Sparks captures Ernest Hemingway to such an extent that we believe we are watching home movies of the real Hemingway. It's helped by being filmed in Hemingway's Cuban home, which is now a national museum. Joely Richardson is similarly marvelous in the role of Hemingway's wife. The film has a quiet lyrical tone even while there are turbulent under currents involving Batista, J. Edgar Hoover, the Mafia, and Fidel Castro's rebels. But the heart of the story is the relationship between the reporter (Giovanni Ribisi) and the Hemingways, as the orphaned reporter becomes part of their "family" and learns for himself what being part of a family truly means.The film will have limited appeal and is best viewed by people interested in Hemingway, or the Cuban revolution, or intense family dramas. AS an added bonus, there are lots of 1950s cars on display, which is a real treat for the eyes.