Studying in Aberdeen, technically at least, and disheartened with the failing of certain .coms.
Studying in Aberdeen, technically at least, and disheartened with the failing of certain .coms.
Member since:09.11.2000
Reviews:16
Members who trust:5
I've been avoiding writing this review since I watched the video over Christmas, because I am afraid no matter what I write I cannot do the film justice. It has so many different themes, different threads to follow that nobody could hope to sum it up in anything less than a dissertation. So be aware that this is inevitably less than the film as a whole.
Our hero is Lester Burnham, a middle-class white man living in suburban America. His life is entirely average, and his voice-overs throughout the film bring attention to the fact that this has left him rather sedate. He feels bored, his life is going nowhere and even his family dislike him. His daughter, Jane, is also feeling the depression of mundanity, and as well as saving up for breast augmentation hates her father. The film is odd already in that the two lead characters, who we are encouraged to feel near equal sympathy for, have a very bad relationship. His wife, Caroline, runs a local estate agency, and maintains the facade of being a completely happy and content person because she feels she has to in order to get on in life. None of the family are happy, but none of them know what to do about it, so they gradually contribute to making each other's lives worse. Each of their lives take a rather dramatic turn, however, as new characters are introduced into the mix. A new family, the Fitz's move in next door, Caroline's arch rival Buddy Kane makes contact with her, and Jane's nubile friend Angela makes quite an impact on Lester.
Lester, whom we follow the most through the film, sees Angela at a cheerleader performance, and is completely bowled over. His rather weak and very embarrassing attempts at small talk with her keep the film light for the first hour at least. The character that influences him the most, though, is the son of the new next-door neighbours, Ricky Fitz. As well as doing the odd catering job (Which is where Lester meets him) he sells massive quantities of dope in his spare time. It is Ricky's confidence when confronted by his boss that, combined with copious amounts of cannabis, inspires Lester to make a stand, quit his job and blackmail his company for over $60,000. It is an inspired move that kicks off the events that bring Lester to life, but,
ultimately also to death. Ricky is interested in Lester's daughter Jane, and they begin their relationship with a rather unconventional courting. Ricky's strength of character and self-confidence makes Jane fall for him almost straight away. Meanwhile, Caroline is screwing Buddy Kane, the "real estate King", after he split up with his young wife.
These three almost completely separate lives come tumultuously together to form the ending of the film. Lester, who has been working part time at the local drive through in an attempt to recapture his lost youth, discovers his wife's adultery when they come for take away. Although he lets her off, he warns her that she no longer has any power over him. The "King" does not take kindly to being discovered, and calls off the affair in case it endangers his divorce case. Ricky's father, in a comic misconception, thinks that Ricky is a gay prostitute, going round to Lester's house to suck him off rather than sell him drugs. In a display of Lester's new character, he does not react at all when Angela tries to flirt with him, and instead is rather direct, throwing her off. As Caroline returns with a loaded gun from the motel she had been staying at, Ricky flees home and tries to convince Jane to go with him. Jane agrees, much to the disgust of Angela, who Ricky quickly puts in her place. Ricky's father comes over, and we are led to believe he is there to attack Lester for paying his son. Instead he breaks down, and when Lester goes to comfort him, tries to kiss Lester. Lester explains he made a mistake, and Ricky's father leaves silently.
As everyone's own personal worlds are falling apart, Lester's is finally coming together. He finds Angela downstairs alone in the dark, listening to a very atmospheric Annie Lennox track, crying after her row with Jane and Ricky. She agrees to have sex with Lester, and only once she is almost naked does she admit that her flirty nature was a ruse, and really she is a virgin. He stops, unwilling to destroy her innocence in a return to the traditional paternal nature everyone knew he really had. Odd as it may seem, Angela seems to become a close friend of his almost instantly because of their shared experience, and Lester confides how much he worries about how Jane's life is. He is relieved when Angela tells him that she is happy, and thinks she is in love. "Good for her" are his last words, before (as was promised from the very beginning of the film) he dies. What happens to Ricky, Jane, Angela, Caroline and Ricky's father we never find out - and it is really unimportant. We do discover which of them is responsible for his death, but I won't spoil that little surprise for you.
The film is a structured masterpiece. Sam Mendes, originally a theatre director, uses many of the skills he learnt there. There is some very tight framing, especially in the Fitz household, and there are a very small number of different sets used, adding to our sense of familiarity. The lighting, whilst not entirely realistic, is very expressive, and it is this that I noticed about it rather than any unnatural connotations. It might seem slightly odd, but you really get a sense of how the characters are feeling, especially in the only real moment of sympathy we feel for Caroline, when her open house day flops pathetically and she breaks down. The music is truly inspired. There is a liberal sprinkling of classic 70's Rock, mostly listened to by Lester, but importantly by Ricky as well. There is also some rather silly "lift music" and cheery old pop that defines Caroline. The main original pieces, however, are three instrumentals that express beautifully the conflicting moods of the film. There is a rapid, sharp track that emphasises the rush and bustle of everyday life. There is also a slow, romantic piece that is used not just in moments of romantic love, but more widely to express the wonder that the film tries to capture. The third is a very odd piece with extensive use of distortion, which is used mainly to convey the conflicting thoughts Lester has about Angela. The camerawork is not very extravagant; it is mostly shot from fixed positions, with very conservative use of zoom and camera movement. This structure is not only indicative of the structure of the character's lives, but also allows us to concentrate more on the characters and their story. The only exception to this is a rather stark one, in Ricky's use of his handheld camcorder. The stock is very grainy, the view wobbles quite extensively, and he is not afraid to zoom with some gusto. This shows us Ricky's confidence, the fact that he doesn't care how something looks when his overall aim is to capture the more abstract "beauty" and wonder of whatever he is filming.
There is no way I can cover every idea and conflicting idea within this film, I don't think I've consciously recognised them all yet and I've watched the film 7 times. The main idea is, obviously, to portray the madness and mundanity of every-day, suburban life. Lester is a dull, lifeless person when we first meet him, going through the motions at work and at the dinner table, and, it is implied, watching TV and wanking for the rest of the time. He tries many different things to escape this. First and foremost is alcohol, the resort of the majority of our population, it seems. He also tries drugs (although only the soft drug cannabis) and tries to take a young lover. At the end of the day, though, it is his morality and paternal instincts that make him happiest, as he can take heart in not abusing Angela's innocence, having an honest discussion, and seeing his daughter happy. But the film does not condemn any of the other approaches he takes, rather it highlights their good points, and allows us to enjoy them with him. There is nothing funnier than a middle-aged man being honest about his life.
The film also reminds us of the inherent beauty the world has, and that we should learn to appreciate it again. Arguably the happiest character in himself, Ricky embraces this beauty and films anything he feels is beautiful. Most noticeable amongst these are a woman frozen to death, a dead bird, a paper bag dancing in the wind, and of course his love - Jane. Jane is slowly brought round to the idea that she too is beautiful, and that the world is not the bad, depressing place she thought it to be if only you look long enough. This leads us on to another point - dominant beliefs and tradition. Lester shocks people with his openness about masturbation, his drug use and impulse buying. He has found the confidence to believe in himself, and not to be constrained by what society tells him is acceptable or "right". Jane is not a traditionally beautiful girl as fashion would have you believe the word, and this depresses her. It is only through getting to know Ricky, and understanding his views of beauty, that she breaks free of this and finds happiness.
Go and watch it. Watch it alone and feel the emotions or watch it with a friend and discuss - there are endless things to discuss, as I am discovering. But it is definitely worthy of your attention.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2007 - Drama - Director: Mike Binder - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Jada Pinkett, Liv Tyler, Saffron Burrows, Donald Sutherland, Mike Binder
Production Year: 1998 - Drama - Director: Carl Franklyn, Carl Franklin - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Meryl Streep, William Hurt, Renee Zellweger, Tom Everett Scott, Nicky Katt, Lauren Graham
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
I've taken this advice on board, and my review of Starship Troopers will, I hope, show evidence of this. I've tried to write about the plot in a wider way, so I can still discuss the themes etc, but without giving too much away. Tell me if it worked ;)
Howiemon 21.02.2001 23:37
Rest assured, your review HAS done justice to the film. I do think that piagetclot has a point though, if someone hasn't seen this film then your review certainly does spoil one or two surprises. I realise that to discuss an issue raised in the movie you really need to mention what the issue is but perhaps you could warn readers that you're about to give away specific plot points.
piagetclot 21.02.2001 20:49
I think this is a great review, but I am troubled by the amount of plot information you give away. I think if you halved that portion, and got straight to the theme discussion, it would be a better review. As it stands, though, it's excellent. - p
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