Edmond is a high flier, working for a well-known firm, and is obstensibly happily married, although he knows that something in his life is not right. Then one day he goes to a fortune teller, who explains that he is not where he belongs. He snaps, goes home, tells his wife he is leaving her and walks out, planning to live a little. He tries to get laid, generally unsuccessfully, and gets badly beaten up by some card hustlers. Having bought a knife in a pawn shop, he meets a man who promises to take him to a girl, only for the man to try and assault him. Pushed to the end of his tether, he knifes the man and leaves him badly injured. Then he finds a girl he likes and persuades her to take him home with her. In his delicate state of mental health, will this help him to decide where he belongs? Or will things go badly and lead to him losing his head completely?
I opted to watch this film mainly because William H Macy stars in it. I am a great fan of his work and think he is sadly underestimated as an actor. I was also interested in the idea of a man being pushed to far and losing control. I think all too many people suffer from mid-life crises, yet it
is a topic that people tend to ignore in the hope that it will go away. The film is adapted from a play by David Mamet, which I have never seen, although because the friend I was watching with had, she was able to tell me something about how the play translated onto the screen.
For me, the strongest part of the film, and in fact, the part that held it together was Macy's performance. Portraying a man who is losing his head is never going to be easy, but I felt that Macy controlled himself superbly throughout the film, letting go of himself only when absolutely necessary. As such, he was incredibly convincing. For such a short film, we are given an amazing insight into Edmond's life thanks to Macy. He makes it seem all too likely that anyone, including a family member, close friend or colleague, could suddenly snap in the way that Edmond does.
Despite Macy's excellent performance, I reached the end of the film unsure whether or not I had enjoyed the film. Whereas I had every sympathy with Macy's plight, outside of his performance, the film seemed incredibly wooden and staged. I really did feel as if I was watching a play on stage rather than a film. Edmond's interactions with various characters throughout the film just don't feel comfortable. It isn't that the actors weren't good - it is more that what they were saying and doing just didn't seem natural. Julia Stiles, for example, plays the woman who is persuaded by Edmond to take him home. Edmond tells her about the knifing incident, whilst waving the knife around as he talks to her, yet for most of the conversation, she eggs him on. I just couldn't believe that any woman in her right mind would have even taken him home, let alone sit there are let him do what he does without being frightened. My friend, having seen the play, felt that the conversations were based very closely around the original. That is all well and good, but I really felt that David Mamet, the playwright, should have made more of an effort to adapt it for the big screen.
The actual direction of the film, if you ignore the script, is visually not bad - particularly the night scenes of the rather seedy part of the city. There is a real emphasis on porn and prostitutes, which may offend some. I didn't particularly like the way that women were portrayed in the film - basically as lumps of meat - but unfortunately, I also think it was realistic. I did wonder, while watching, whether David Mamet has a bit of a problem with women, which comes out in his work. It would certainly explain why the film ends in the way it does. This is not one of those films where the progression of the story is easily guessable - I was certainly quite taken aback with the way that it ends.
The message of the film is very clear. There are only a few times in our lives when we are truly happy. For most of the rest of it, we breathe, but are not really living. Therefore, sometimes we need to make changes in our lives so that we have, even for the briefest of moments, the knowledge of what it is to be happy. Unfortunately, Edmond has to make a lot of mistakes before he can get to that stage. And they are very violent mistakes. Anyone who doesn't like violence will not like this film. It does not dwell on violent acts too much - during one attack, for example, we see lots of blood, but not the injured person. This really did make the film all the more disturbing for me and I was left feeling a little bit shell-shocked, as was my friend.
It took me a long time to decide whether I would recommend this film or not. There were a lot of things about it that I didn't like. In fact, if it wasn't for Macy, I probably would have hated it. However, because of his performance, and because I was left thinking about what it all meant, I am going to recommend it. Just don't expect a Hollywood blockbuster or a film with a happy ending, because you won't get one.
Thriller - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Timothy West, Neil Morrissey, Tara Fitzgerald, Annette Crosbie, Pauline Quirke, Rob Brydon, Denise Van Outen, John Thomson, Kevin Whately, David Suchet
Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: K.C. Bascombe - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jesse James, Rachel Skarsten, Charles Powell, Linda Purl, Kevin Zegars
Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: Bharat Nalluri, Rob Bailey, Andy Wilson - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Matthew MacFadyen, Keeley Hawes, David Oyelowo, Peter Firth, Jenny Agutter, Lisa Faulkner
I too love William H Macy, and I think you might enjoy Oleanna a bit more than you did this, if you haven't seen it already!
pennywa 13.03.2008 21:19
Great review! Penny xxxxx
venice105 13.03.2008 12:50
Macy is a great actor but like you I find Mamet lacking something. Of course he and Macy have a long history together so some of his best performances are in Mamet stuff -Oleanna, etc. So now do I sit through this to see Macy, hm! :-)
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