Colin Firth, Mena Suvari and Naomi Harris star in this certificate 15 Marc Evans-directed film. The film is about an hour and a half long.
Martin Hancock appears as a music manager and there are cameos from newscasters Dermot Murnaghan and Kirsty Young.
Popstar Lauren Paris has been found murdered in a canal and Ben (Firth) awakens from a coma after a car crash to learn his wife Elisa was killed in the accident. Or was she? The two cases become intertwined and Ben is implicated.
There are many twists and turns in the plot as Ben tries to re-build his life, look after his pet ants and make friends with Charlotte, who he rents his flat from. The flat is actually in an old converted hospital which adds to the atmosphere and to Ben's woes. There's also the matter of the dead popstar and how the fans are grieving for her. "How can they grieve for someone they didn't even know?" says Ben. There are overt references to Princess Diana as well, in one scene where Ben is listening to a radio phone-in.
The film deals with many traumatic issues, such as crime, public/private grief and mental illness. While the representations of illness are not wholly positive (Ben is seen to commit a crime when it's actually very rare), Firth puts in a brave performance as a man who is frightened and confused. The therapy scenes are especially realistic.
However, the story is often very confusing for the audience as well and even the ending seems to be left open. It's difficult to tell what is real and what Ben is just dreaming about or seeing in his head. Only the murder story seemed to be finished. I also found certain aspects offensive but I can't explain that in great detail without giving away the ending.
This film has some intriguing ideas but it fails to deliver them properly. The actors do good work with average material. The style is often too unnecessarily creepy. The scenes with the escaped ants are really horrible.
"Trauma" feels like an especially long episode of a standard BBC crime series, which is not surprising seeing as it's a BBC film. The special effects are not that special and the cast is small. Think "Waking The Dead" without bellowing Trevor Eve. It may be more suited to the small screen, mainly due to the humdrum sets and close-up camera shots.
It goes on general cinema release on 17th Sept but I would recommend waiting until this is out on video, to be honest.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
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I'll take your advice and wait for the DVD. Maureen
Zoe 16.09.2004 12:48
A well written plot outline and some nice analysis of that plot (without giving the game away). I'd be interested to hear more about the film, what makes it feel 'small screen'? Production values, score, cinematography? How well are the special effects/flashbacks handled? It's a good, concise review; but I suspect there's more to say here. Zx
Believe what you see. See what you believe... Awaking from a coma to discover his wife ... more
has been killed in a car accident Ben's (Colin Firth) world may as well have come to an end. A few weeks later Ben is out of hospital and attempting to rebuild hi...
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Frightened and disorientated, Ben awakes from a coma in hospital to discover that he has ... more
been in a car crash. When he learns that his wife Elisa was killed in the accident, his world might as well have ended.A few weeks later, Ben is out of hospital an...
Advantages: creatively shot and of course an excellent british actor in the lead Disadvantages: a confusing psychological plot which is at most times boring
Minty23 15.04.2005 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Trauma (DVD)
Advantages: creatively shot and of course an excellent british actor in the lead Disadvantages: a confusing psychological plot which is at most times boring
Minty23 15.04.2005 ·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Trauma (DVD)
![Trauma [DVD] [2004]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78502840.jpg "Trauma [DVD] [2004]")
Sep 16th, 2004
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