The Disgrace, Shame, and Misery of Sex Addiction
Steve McQueen has created a masterpiece in Shame. This is the best film of 2011. A film I have seen thrice now, twice in theatres, and once now on DVD.
Michael Fassbender is a revelation as an actor, and it is no surprise he is one of the most desired actors in all of Hollywood. He has created a fascinating character in "Brandon," a man whose existence is defined by porn addiction, masturbating in the company bathroom, and having lots of unemotional sex with woman, and in desperation, men.
Brandon, by all definitions, is a sex addict. He loads his computer with so much porn that it must be replaced. Even I don't do that. He has sex with women he meets at bars. He has sex with escorts. He has sex with just about anybody that is willing to have sex with him.
When we first see Brandon, he is in bed, staring up at the ceiling. His morning routine involves getting out of bed, going into the kitchen, and taking a shower. His sister (Carey Mulligan) calls him repeatedly, leaving lengthy, pleading messages on his answering machine. He never returns the calls. Brandon is a classic portrait of a man who exhibits few emotions; everything in his life is physical. He has no emotional attachments to anybody he sleeps with. He has friends, co-workers, but I'd hardly call them good friends. He cuts himself off emotionally to his sister, though deep-down there is a bond there.
Brandon's life is thrown out of whack when Sissy (his sister) shows up at his apartment, unannounced. Their first encounter is when he walks in on her in his bathroom. He reluctantly agrees to allow her to stay on his couch for a few days while she figures some things out. Brandon and Sissy have a magnificently accurate brother-sister relationship, albeit not a normal one. They were obviously both damaged in their earlier years, though the film never explicitly explains how. And why should it?
Sissy is essentially the exact opposite of Brandon, emotionally. She wears her emotions on her sleeve; becomes attached to Brandon's boss after what he considered a one-night stand. She yearns for Brandon's attention, but he's reluctant to offer it. Not to Sissy. Not to anyone.
It must be a horrible, exhausting, painful life for a sex addict. Especially when what is typically the source of pleasure for many people becomes the very source of pain, shame, and disgrace for you; but you can't help but indulge. Alcoholism. Drug addiction. Very much the same.
In one of my favorite scenes of the film, Brandon, approaching his tipping point, goes to a bar and proceeds to flirt with a woman. Brandon's method of flirting isn't the same as most people's. In this instance, he boldly talks about how much he would like to fuck her, and then slips his hand under her skirt. But this isn't such a simple scene. In a stroke of genius, Director McQueen cuts between this scene, and the moments after this scene. In so doing, we know exactly where this scene is headed. And normally, that would be a bad thing. But here, it provides a rather terrifying energy to what Brandon is doing; the self-destruction; the cockiness; and his sly, provocative smile. It's a sequence of brilliant editing, writing, and acting.
On a budget of approximately $6.5 million, this film netted nearly $18 million at the box office. A fair achievement, considering it's NC-17 rating - normally the death knell for any film. I find many faults with the MPAA's emphasis on sex over violence, however in the case of this film, I cannot fault them for an NC-17 rating. Does anyone under 18 really need to see this film? I think not. My only wish is that there wasn't such a stigma attached to the NC-17 rating.
Shame is a brilliant, masterfully acted, stunningly shot, beautifully directed piece of art. Its cinematography is a collage of blues, oranges, and yellows. The contrasts of warm and cool lighting are gorgeous. This could be an educational video on the art of editing in a day and age where cutting every three seconds seems to be the trend. Shame is economical and thoughtful in its shot selection. It is the best film of 2011 and one of the top five films in the past decade.
When we first see Brandon, he is in bed, staring up at the ceiling. His morning routine involves getting out of bed, going into the kitchen, and taking a shower. His sister (Carey Mulligan) calls him repeatedly, leaving lengthy, pleading messages on his answering machine. He never returns the calls. Brandon is a classic portrait of a man who exhibits few emotions; everything in his life is physical. He has no emotional attachments to anybody he sleeps with. He has friends, co-workers, but I'd hardly call them good friends. He cuts himself off emotionally to his sister, though deep-down there is a bond there.
Brandon's life is thrown out of whack when Sissy (his sister) shows up at his apartment, unannounced. Their first encounter is when he walks in on her in his bathroom. He reluctantly agrees to allow her to stay on his couch for a few days while she figures some things out. Brandon and Sissy have a magnificently accurate brother-sister relationship, albeit not a normal one. They were obviously both damaged in their earlier years, though the film never explicitly explains how. And why should it?
Sissy is essentially the exact opposite of Brandon, emotionally. She wears her emotions on her sleeve; becomes attached to Brandon's boss after what he considered a one-night stand. She yearns for Brandon's attention, but he's reluctant to offer it. Not to Sissy. Not to anyone.
It must be a horrible, exhausting, painful life for a sex addict. Especially when what is typically the source of pleasure for many people becomes the very source of pain, shame, and disgrace for you; but you can't help but indulge. Alcoholism. Drug addiction. Very much the same.
In one of my favorite scenes of the film, Brandon, approaching his tipping point, goes to a bar and proceeds to flirt with a woman. Brandon's method of flirting isn't the same as most people's. In this instance, he boldly talks about how much he would like to fuck her, and then slips his hand under her skirt. But this isn't such a simple scene. In a stroke of genius, Director McQueen cuts between this scene, and the moments after this scene. In so doing, we know exactly where this scene is headed. And normally, that would be a bad thing. But here, it provides a rather terrifying energy to what Brandon is doing; the self-destruction; the cockiness; and his sly, provocative smile. It's a sequence of brilliant editing, writing, and acting.
Shame is a brilliant, masterfully acted, stunningly shot, beautifully directed piece of art. Its cinematography is a collage of blues, oranges, and yellows. The contrasts of warm and cool lighting are gorgeous. This could be an educational video on the art of editing in a day and age where cutting every three seconds seems to be the trend. Shame is economical and thoughtful in its shot selection. It is the best film of 2011 and one of the top five films in the past decade.
No comments:
Post a Comment