Speaking Parts (Atom Egoyan, 1989)

Another early (by which I mean pre-Exotica) Egoyan film, Speaking Parts falls between Family Viewing and The Adjuster in his filmography, and represents a logical bridge between the two. Egoyan's early obsession with the videotaped image and voyeurism is here in full effect. The story revolves around Lance, a struggling actor who works at a hotel as both housekeeping and the hotel manager's personal gigolo. Lisa (Arsinee Khanjian, whom I am now convinced is never bad) is Lance's coworker and is desperately in love with him, to the extent that she obsessively rents the movies in which Lance is an extra over and over to see his fleeting moments of fame. Clara is a writer who has written a tv movie and is staying at Lance and Lisa's hotel; Lance slips her his headshot, and gets himself an audition and an affair with Clara, although it is quickly clear to everyone but Clara that Lance is just using her to finally get a speaking part. These people's lives become more complex with their interactions with one another, and, as in Egoyan's films, their inner lives become more interesting than their actual interactions. There is also an interesting plot line about how Clara's script gets radically changed by the producers of the television movie, and what writers in the movie business go through, even to their most intimate, personal stories, as this one obviously is to Clara. This is a turning point in Egoyan's filmmaking, I think. It represents to me a step toward the more mature, complex filmmaking that lies ahead, and also is better directed than his earlier efforts, which should be obvious but is impressive nonetheless. This is the first film (chronologically) of his that I was really impressed with the cinematography and composition. This film has a very interesting plot, and the performances are all pretty solid, but it's most interesting as a stepping stone in Egoyan's career. The films that are obsessed with video pretty much end with this one, but Egoyan keeps the voyeuristic elements and matures them after this film. Speaking Parts is a good, if a little dragging, exploration of obsessive love and what makes people who they are, and I definitely recommend it for people who like Egoyan as much as I do. 7/10 RIYL: Harold Pinter

Stumble It!

The Adjuster (Atom Egoyan, 1991)

As if you weren't sick of reading about Atom Egoyan films by now (this is my last one for a while, though!), I rented The Adjuster the other night. Much like Exotica, the film starts with scenes of seemingly incomprehensible things, like a group of adults in a theater taking notes on hardcore pornography, and a woman comforting, then seducing, a sick homeless man on the subway (who turns out to be her husband, as they like to play games like that). Again like Exotica, the pieces come together to form a cohesive and intriguing picture of, as Egoyan puts it, believable people doing believeable things in unbelievable ways. Noah, the insurance adjuster of the title, lives with his wife Hera, her sister Seta, and their child, Simon. He gets very involved in the lives of people whose insurance claims he is helping along, which usually means sleeping with them, male or female. Noah and Hera barely speak, and when they do, in my favorite scene of the film, Hera asks him if she makes him feel stupid when she asks something that deserves consideration and he answers mindlessly. He denies it, even seems confused by the question, but Hera knows what's going on in their marriage. Noah and family live in a deserted housing development, of which they are the only one - the developer promised more houses in the future, but for now, they are the only ones in this imaginary ideal. Add to that a couple, Bubba and Mimi, who are into voyeurism, and go so far as to rent out Noah's house for a "movie." Whether or not we think that these characters and/or their actions are actually believable, Egoyan presents them as real people with real problems and fears, ones that we can relate to, as they are us in the extreme. Again, I watched the film partially with Egoyan's commentary on, and it really illuminated a lot of things about the film that I otherwise would not have caught. This film is pretty avant-garde when compared to Egoyan's other work, and deserves to be seen. The ideas he started slowly unfolding in The Adjuster would come to fruition in a more mature way a few years later in Exotica, but this movie is definitely part of the process, a movie that deserves to be seen more than once to get the full impact. 7/10 RIYL: Denys Arcand

Stumble It!

Next of Kin (Atom Egoyan, 1984)

Another entry in my Atom Egoyan fest, Next of Kin is Egoyan's first feature, shot on basically nothing, yet is pretty impressive. Peter lives at home, doing nothing, and his parents eventually decide to take him to family therapy. Through his favorite activity, pretending, he finds the file of an Armenian family who gave their son up for adoption at a very young age, and are still grieving the loss. Peter decides to meet up with the family, and pretend to be the long-lost Bedros. While Peter is lily-white and bears no resemblance to the family (parents George and Sonya and daughter Azah), their willingness to believe is so strong that they welcome him with open arms. Although there is some sexual tension between Peter and Azah (she probably realizes he's lying, but never acknowledges it outright), he becomes a part of the family, and a unifying part at that. The ending of the story is appropriate and not very predictable, and the performances are all pretty strong. My favorite part about this DVD, though, was the amazing commentary by Egoyan himself. If I respected the talent of this man before, I respect his eloquence and intelligence even more now. The commentary is everything an interesting commentary should be: intelligent, interesting, funny, and inspiring. Egoyan isn't afraid to tear apart his first film, pointing out his faults and stubbornness as a first-time director, yet encouraging new filmmakers at the same time. I would encourage anyone interested in films or making films to listen to this commentary, as it's really the kind you hope for with such an intelligent, interesting film. 8/10 (including the commentary) RIYL: Exotica

Stumble It!

Family Viewing (Atom Egoyan, 1987)

The next stop in my Atom Egoyan watching spree was Family Viewing, a relatively early work that was Egoyan's first real success, gaining fans like Wim Wenders (who insisted on giving his prize to Egoyan) at the Montreal Film Festival. With its great direction and good script, you wouldn't think this film could lose. You'd be wrong. The story revolves around Van, a young man obsessed with his grandmother, who lives with his father, Stan, who is in a twisted sort of relationship with phone-sex operator Aline (Egoyan's wife Arsinee Khanjian, who is wonderful as always), and Stan's girlfriend Sandra, who is in love with Van. All the characters are hardcore voyeurs, always watching themselves or others on videotape instead of connecting with them in real life. This sounds like an interesting premise, and it is, but the film is all but ruined by the terrible performances. Understandably, Egoyan (probably, I'm not sure) had to use amateurs because he was not yet a known filmmaker, but it really ruins the realism of the film. All the actors, with the exception of Khanjian, but especially Aidan Tierney, who plays Van. Van's character is an exceptionally unlikeable one, basically still a child, but thinks he knows everything about the world. He is unbudgeable and obsessed with his grandma, but doesn't understand anything about real life. With a good actor, Van could have been an interesting, complex character, but in Tierney's hands, he is wooden and incredibly unlikeable. It makes the whole movie almost a chore to watch at times, and took me out of the action and into snobby Dana mode. Not a good thing. I recommend this movie for those who want to look at a great filmmaker's past, and see a movie that could have been great, but, for me, the ride itself wasn't enjoyable. 4/10

Stumble It!

The Sweet Hereafter (Atom Egoyan, 1997)

The next film in my new Egoyan obsession was The Sweet Hereafter, which is probably Egoyan's most well known and acclaimed film. It's the story of a small town, devastated by a school bus crash that killed most of the town's children, and the big city lawyer with his own problems who comes in to get the victims lined up for a class-action suit. The plot sounds typical, but the characters are anything but. The townspeople are not just grieving small-town yokels, and neither is Mr. Stephens, the lawyer, a slick big-city guy looking to take these people for all the money they can. Everyone has their own ways of grieving, from sex, to anger, to the bus driver's extreme contrition yet unfailing optimism. Stephens has a daughter, Zoe, whom he loves so much, yet who despises him and is in an unending downward spiral. Billy, played by Bruce Greenwood, tries to convince his fellow townspeople to dismiss the lawsuit against the bus manufacturer. Nicole, Sarah Polley in a solid performance, is a survivor of the crash who is now paralyzed, and holds the whole lawsuit's fate in her hands. There is also a subtle incest subplot, which plays a huge part in the movie's ending. Egoyan portrays these people as just like any others, with huge secrets and hidden sides. The performances are all very real, and the scene where Billy sees the bus with his children on it spin down the icy hill to the children's deaths is one of the most tragic I have seen on film. Another amazingly powerful scene is when Stephens recounts the story of when his daughter almost died as a baby, when he held her life in his hands, literally. These two centerpiece scenes evoke the tragic nature of everyday life. Most of the film is so understated, however, that the tragedy is almost muted. The realism goes further than my emotions can follow, I suppose. So while I definitely liked this film a lot, it didn't reach the heights I thought Exotica did. 7.5/10 RIYL: The Ice Storm

Stumble It!

Exotica (Atom Egoyan, 1994)

Before Exotica, I had only seen the somewhat disappointing Where the Truth Lies from Egoyan before, but knowing much of his reputation and having seen a few impressive interviews with him (This Film is Not Yet Rated the latest example), I was more than willing to give this movie a shot. Am I ever glad that I did. A kind of interweaving-tales movie before those became so ridiculously en vogue (although I am a sucker for them, almost always), Exotica is the story of Christina, a dancer at the Exotica club; Eric, her ex who is still obsessed with her; Francis, Christina's best client who is dealing with a personal tragedy; and Thomas, a neurotic, gay Jew who runs an exotic pet store and a successful egg-smuggling business. The lives of these people, and those with whom they come in contact, weave in and out of one another's. Egoyan leaves large blanks in the viewer's understanding of these characters, which was admittedly frustrating during the first hour of the film. I wasn't sure how much I liked it, because at times, I had no idea what was going on, or what events people were referring to. This is, obviously, Egoyan's plan, and as pieces of the puzzle fall into place in the film's second half, it becomes a masterpiece of the kinds of lives we lead, versus the kinds of lives we'd like to lead. Every character in this film is in pieces, in one way or another having lost something very important, and it makes you wonder who is "normal," and whether these people have very dark secrets hidden behind their own curtains, as well. Along with the beautifully flawed nature of human existence, Egoyan brings to the center a topic I love discussing (having been a Women's Studies concentrator in college), but haven't had much to think about lately: sexuality and the flesh, and how they can be used in multiple ways, even all at once. The Exotica club is a home and a jail for these characters, and Christina, the main (although not only) source of sexuality in the film, is botha therapist and "jailbait," a sinner and a saint all at once through the same actions. Zoe, the club's owner, is pregnant (and, through IMDB research, Arsinne Khanjian, the actress who plays Zoe, is Egoyan's wife and was actually very pregnant at the time), and seeing a pregnant woman in her underwear or walking through a strip club in extravagant costumes is a beautiful visual paradox. The performances, while great (especially Bruce Greenwood as the tragic Francis), especially in the beautiful and devastating final scene, where it all comes together, cannot possibly stand up to Egoyan's brilliant script and directing. If any film other than Pulp Fiction had won the Palme d'Or in 1994, I would cry unfair! This made me an instant Egoyan acolyte, and I will be watching all his films asap (in fact, The Sweet Hereafter is on the agenda for the holiday weekend). 9/10 RIYL: Amores Perros (similar structure, same themes of obsession/love and family)

Stumble It!