City, Friends & Sex

I was not conscious of "Splendor" being a Gregg Araki film when I started watching it but after the first two sequences I was thinking: "this is great directing-who did this"? While the technique screams "Araki", as does the casting of Kathleen Robertson, the narrative is so conventional that you find the combination hard to reconcile. I loved an earlier comment that "Splendor" is like a John Hughes remake of "The Doom Generation"; i.e. very conventional and without the sex and violence, with a three-way relationship (two males-one female), Johnathon Schaech, and Director Araki's absolutely amazing production and post-production skills-along with his less than dazzling scripting.

Although Araki is paying homage to the great screwball comedies of the 1930's: "Topper", "It Happened One Night", "The Awful Truth", and "Bringing Up Baby"; the style and substance of "Splendor" is closer to Mike Nichols' "The Graduate" (not to mention an amusing parody of the "Graduate's" climatic wedding scene).

Kathleen Robertson has the Rose McGowen part in this version of "The Doom Generation" and is generally well suited to the role. I have not decided yet if Robertson is in McGowen's class as an actress, or in the class of her fellow Canadians Mia Kirshner and Sarah Polley. Robertson was excellent in "Maniac Mansion" and "Beverly Hills 90210", but these were similar roles that appear to mirror her own cool and detached personality. One thing that is clear is that she was a great choice for Ariki's trademark close-ups. Anyone perceptive enough to close the camera to face distance when shooting McGowen, Robertson, and most recently Michelle Trachtenberg has a eye for breathtakingly beautiful visuals.

The premise does not really have enough substance to sustain a feature although it might work as a half-hour television sit-com (see "Three's Company"). When the premise becomes tired the story brings in a new character, Eric Mabious; and the film self-destructs, killing time until a decent ending sequence. A tip-off that a screen writer has limited life experience to draw from is having cast and crew occupations for the characters. Robertson's character is an aspiring actress and Mabious is directing her in a made-for-television drama. His character is so hopelessly one-dimensional and painfully pathetic that I was convinced that he had a sinister side (what was with those blue contact lenses) that would eventually manifest itself. But this does not happen, maybe Araki had something interesting in mind and abandoned it in re-write. Mabious becomes a non-factor (see totally irrelevancy) and his scenes were simply inserted as padding to get this thing up to feature length.

The bottom line is that Araki fans will be a little disappointed with "Splendor". It is very conventional, it isn't much of a story, and the good banter is limited (although Kelly MacDonald has fantastic dialogue in all her scenes) . But if your Araki appreciation is more for his directorial talents (casting, mise en scene details, camera movement and placement) and his post-production originality, you will find "Splendor" measures up very well to his prior work. The morning after scene early in the film simply blows away anything similar from any director.

This movie has a fresh and intriguing premise -- or anyway, one which is carried forward and explored to an unusual degree. But unfortunately it both is and isn't very well done.

Visually, it's very well done. Kathleen Robertson, as the Victoria who can attract two hunky guys so much that they put up with living all together, is absolutely stunning. She's a blonde beauty to begin with, but as well her face positively radiates light in this film. She's got the glowing look of a woman first falling head over hells in love, and then pregnant at the same time. I'm not sure how they / she did it, but it's pretty compelling. As well the reckless young 20 something LA party scene atmosphere, which Araki used with even more (and darker) abandon in "Doom" and "Nowhere" (and I understand as well in the all gay "Totally F**ked Up" which I haven't seen), is colorful here as well. Veronica's jumping Matt at second sight, in the bathroom, is a memorably abandoned casual sex scene. Hot. Most of the movie is in high contrast, diffuse back lighted candy colors. The atmosphere is fun, fun, fun. All of which makes a good date movie.

Emotionally it only goes just below skin deep. Yeah, OK, the two guys have different personalities, sort of. One is the carefree musician / jock physical type. None too bright. But sweet. The other is the emotionally soulful writer type. But both soon seem to merge into hunky male dependency on her, financially and emotionally. Ah yes. The theme song of the feminist 90's. Actually, she digs it.

There are some interesting sex relations insights (gay world derrived -- natch for the 90's), such as that for a two hunky guys and one gorgeous girl threesome in the same bed to work, the two guys are gonna have to get off on each other physically as well as emotionally, at least to some degree. (Just kissing, the film pretends -- maybe.) But supposedly all are overwhelming hetero, if not entirely exclusively so. The relationship conflicts which would be sure to be there, to be dealt with successfully perhaps, are hardly seen at all in this film. In fact the guys look increasingly gay to me, but that is little explored.

Instead, the plot moves forward through a different conflict -- her perceived need for ANOTHER sort of man. A career and financially successful one, who can help her in the traditional ways -- once she learns she's pregnant from one of her happy go lucky, but femme submissive, hunks. The trouble of course is that she doesn't LOVE the successful guy. He too is a male submissive, but of the casper milktoast variety. I mean this guy convinces her to go with him on a weekend getaway to his condo in Maui with the promise of "only talking", and then when she's receptive to him after being blow away by the luxe, he remains "true to his word", the idiot, and doesn't do diddly. She was begging for it Earnest. Talk about a testosterone deficit!!!

Nonetheless, our heroine gets engaged to Earnest. He's so nice, and life with him would be so secure. This is getting pedestrian. As well, at this point the film loses any semblance of honesty. "Earnest is the kind of guy who would stick around, whether it was fun or not", she explains to her girlfriend. Of course the film never asks the obvious reverse question. Is she? Probably because you'd get the wrong answer. Next her lesbo girlfriend warns her against marrying someone she doesn't really and truly love. "I'm doing the responsible thing" she says. Her girlfriend counters: 'Even if it means ball and chaining yourself to him for the rest of your life?"

As if!!! Under today's feminist "reformed" divorce laws? What total dishonesty! Just what would be the downside to Victoria marrying Earnest? How long does she have to stay with him? What does she get if she splits after a couple of years? For that matter, what would keep this thinking-outside-the-traditional-box femme from shacking up with her two hunks three or four nights a week while she's married to her well off milktoast? And what would be the consequences for her if she did? Horrible, for such duplicity, right? Hardly. If Earnest decided not to put up with it after a while, guess who'd have to pay for the mistake, and the transgressions? Why Earnest of course!!! Welcome to marriage law in feminist America. Whatever emotional significance most people still attach to marriage commitments at least before the fact, legally marriage is now almost entirely a one way contract which obligates only men, and not women.

Was the possibility that Earnest could be viewed by Victoria not as an alternative to her dual action thing, but really as a supplement to it, touched on by this flick? Why not? After all, isn't it a natural line to explore, since she's trying to combine an edgy sexual relationship with multiple submissive men, with financial security for her child? Isn't it begging to be explored, after a line like: 'Even if it means ball and chaining yourself to him for the rest of your life?"

Maybe it's not because then the incredible bias in feminist "reformed" American marriage (divorce) law today would come into focus. We can't have that, now can we?

Oh, and another thing. When are we going to see a flick which flips this script? Two (or more) predominantly hetero women living happily with one guy? Where that is celebrated, I mean, rather than vilified. When in the last 1 1/2 decades has that been done? Anyone care to name the American film? It can't be done.

Araki's most overtly heterosexual film, and hence painfully mainstream, is undeniably a dissapointment for fans of his previous films, particularly the brilliant twosome "Nowhere" and "The Doom Generation". In fact in many ways "Splendour" is like a John Hughes remake of "The Doom Generations" but without the explicit sex and violence, severed heads, castrations and Parker Posey in a bizarre wig - Araki has tossed his nihilism out the window, and come up with a frustratingly conventional romcom. It continues his repeated fascination with the three-way relationship, perhaps for obvious reasons he can only portray a heterosexual relationship with two males present, and his unique visual and editing style is still apparent though toned down. Not a bad film by any means as it is enjoyable and the performances are good, but one can't help but feel underwhelmed following the daft "Graduate"-style ending. Let's hope this is a one-off for Araki.

"Splendor" is verrry light but amiable. Kathleen Robertson, though, is a real discovery, beautiful and a convincing actress. As the old cliche goes, the camera loves her face. For once, men in a movie are just wallpaper, as Robertson carries the film. Candy-colored cinematography,a well chosen soundtrack and a fast pace make this movie a pleasant waste of time.

Former kinetic Doom Generation provocateur Araki tries to become a modern Douglas Sirk with this largely unexciting, faintly comic romance about a woman who loves two men at once and finds three-way domestic bliss, until the guys turn into "Beavis and Butthead", and she gets pregnant. Like Sirk's super-excessive 50's melodramas, the film attempts to turn basically banal, formulaic material into a swooning, sensual spectacle, and some scenes do have a striking design muscularity (the bar where a video triptych forms the backdrop to their conversation; Robertson's apartment, with the huge clock sometimes seeming suspended Dali-like). More often though, the enterprise seems merely shallow, with the movie flashing up blocks of color as if hoping that the mere evocation of a rainbow might somehow spawn a pot of gold. Araki pushes his actors into a banality that sometimes verges on sheer babyishness (Keeslar is particularly badly handled), and the movie - given its somewhat raunchy theme - displays an odd decorousness and modesty, being weirdly coy for example about the gay implications of the arrangement. The Toronto Film Festival guide cites Truffaut and Sturges as influences rather than Sirk - either way, Araki doesn't seem to be himself here.