The Passion of Darkly Noon

I watched this film yesterday and was pretty blown away by it. It's very much like a magical realist novel in how it mixes aspects of modern life and society with fairy tale mythology and a general dreamlike atmosphere.

The story is basically about a young man named Darkly Noon who has been brought up by religious fanatics and who stumbles upon a weird "family" of three that lives deep in the woods after his parents are murdered. These people consist of Callie, a women who is so beautiful and sensual she's being compared to a force of nature, her mute boyfriend and a third young man. At the beginning Darkly, played by Brendan Fraser who is actually downright awesome in this film, is alone with Callie, which causes a lot of confusion as he's attracted to her and his sexual desires clash with both his religious dogmas and, upon his return, with her boyfriend. There's also a strange old woman living in the woods who claims that Callie is in fact a witch who seduces and kills every man she meets and also accuses her of having murdered most of her family. With that in mind Darkly, who has been continuously mutilating himself to control his urges, decides Callie needs to be punished for her sins against god. Things go very wrong from there...

The Passion of Darkly Noon is a tough film to describe because there really are not a lot of movies that are anything like it. It's part thriller, part dark erotic drama, part supernatural horror and part fairy tale. Now try to wrap your mind around that ... It is expertly and effectively directed by Philip Ridley, who has only directed this film and THE REFLECTING SKIN a few years before it and spends most of his time writing children's books. Which makes sense because DARKLY NOON bears some resemblance to the simplicity of the narratives of children's books. It's just that it goes into extremely dark and adult territory instead of remaining wholesome and family-friendly. The performances by everyone involved are great, Fraser really surprised me with his portrayal of Darkly. The guy once had some promise before he decided to squander it all in ridiculous braindead blockbusters. Ashley Judd, who plays Callie, also does a great job with a very difficult role. Callie is incredibly seductive, naive, playful and almost childlike all at once and Judd pulls it off admirably. Her mute boyfriend is played by Viggo Morensen and he's also good in a role that requires him to convey everything with gestures alone. Special praise has to go to Nick Bicat for a truly haunting score that fits the style of the film and John de Borman's lush cinematography perfectly.

THE PASSION OF DARKLY NOON is the best film I have seen in a long time and a genuine discovery.

The weirdly named Darkly Noon (Brendan Frasier) is the sole survivor of a Waco-style massacre and a religious fanatic. He is taken in by Ashley Judd, who lives in a isolated cabin in a huge forest. The first set of tensions come when Noon's strong attraction towards Judd clash with his religious beliefs. The second arise when Judd's mute boyfriend Viggo Mortensen returns. And then hermit Grace Zabriskie befriends Noon and tells him Judd is a witch.

This is pretty impressive stuff from writer and director Philip Ridley. He's not afraid to risk being pretentious and, in truth, he is at times. Mostly, though, he creates an unsettling, powerful piece with the texture of a nightmare. Surreal at times (a giant, glittering boot floating down a river?) it conveys the powerful and enigmatic nature of both human emotions and the unexplored forest. It's clear that things are going to end bloody but, crucially, you can't guess for who; because at times it seems the coquettish Judd might be a witch.

Honestly, this movie gave me the creeps. The intense psychological symbolism going on in it really makes for a total mind-candy movie. It takes you on a journey through the deconstruction of a young man's mind through conflict with his religious beliefs and outright lies. You once again get a new facet of Brendan Fraser's acting ability during his portrayal of the tortured Darkly Noon. The movie is absolutely chilling. I recommend it, if you're into movies that make you think. It may be hard to get, Blockbuster had to order it for me.

I have to say this is not the type of film i thought Brendan Fraser would be in but i was wrong. Brendan was pain stakingly vulnerable as Darkly who is taken in by Callie where he was found in the forests.

The story follows on as Darkly is very religious Callie a free-

spirited girl and Darkly cant stand it because he looks up to his

parent and they taught how things should be.

Callie doesn't seem to agree and thinks life should be free and having

desires and love is not a crime.

His jealousy grows when Callie's boyfriend returns Darkly seems to be having some deep feelings for Callie which he can not control.

I thought this film was very intense and dark it was one of Brendan Fraser's darkest roles i've ever seen he played the role with sensitivity and vulnerability.

This is a very different film. Beautiful, surreal, it has a dream-like quality with stark echoes of Ridley's equally beautiful "Reflecting Skin". It is an odyssey into a waken dream which is not to be taken as real, but as some kind of fairy tale. Ridley himself is not one of those Hollywood hacks that would be lost without their million-bucks equipment, but a true artist in the noble sense of the word, with a universe of his own (as anybody who saw his "American Gothic" paintings, a direct inspiration to his two films, or his play "Pitchfork Disney" would understand. Experience it for yourself.