Swoon

The true story of gay lovers, Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold Jr. who kidnapped and murdered a child in the early 1920s for kicks. The plot covers the months before the crime, the investigation, trial and final fate of the two men.

Of the few film versions of this story out there, they all seem to be naturally quite good. "Compulsion" is no doubt the best, and this film definitely takes some cues from it. Based on what I know of the case, the script follows reality quite closely.

This version does play up the homosexual angle a bit more, though there is some debate on that. My understanding is that one of the two was clearly gay, but the other may or may not have been. Regardless, this is an aspect that makes the case all the more interesting... even when it is more subtle such as in "Rope".

In this modern version of the infamous Leopold and Loeb murder case of the 1920s, "Swoon" stresses the gay angle, relative to "Compulsion" (1959), a film of the same story, but burdened by the watchful eye of the censors associated with the moralistic Hays Code. Actual court records do in fact indicate that the relationship or bond between these two guys was primarily sexual.

Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb apparently had a masochistic pact. And "Swoon" asks the question: which guy was in control? The answer seems to be that they alternated control. Also, compared to "Compulsion", more attention is given to the actual murder of the teenage boy.

This film is quite stylized. Archival images and lyrical cutaways unrelated to the story are used because they are thematically relevant. Further, some scenes are intended as dreams. And non-period piece elements add textural perspective.

The real Nathan Leopold is shown in historical footage, first as a young man at about the time of the actual killing. He is shown in a sequence with a group of fellow ornithologists. And near the end of the film, he is shown as an older man, having been released from prison.

"Swoon" was shot in B&W. Images are a tad grainy, maybe deliberately so, as part of the film's visual style. Casting and acting are fine. I did not care for the background music. It's too whimsical and kooky sounding, given the subject matter. But the music does contribute to the film's overall flighty, giddy tone, reflected in the lack of emotional involvement of the characters. Further, the killing of the young boy is perfunctory and nonchalant.

The film's peculiar tone and mood I found annoying. Yet, it's probably consistent with the mindset of these two peculiar criminals, two guys, both cerebral and intelligent, completely lacking both in conscience and in a sense of moral principles.

Overall, compared to "Compulsion", "Swoon" is more direct, and perhaps a tad more thematically compelling.

Director Tom Kalin took the Leopold and Loeb murder case of the 1920s, which already had been the basis of such films as "Rope" and "Compulsion," and filmed the sordid episode as an exercise in style with flashes of homo-erotic imagery. In his film, "Swoon," Kalin does not flinch from either the murderers' ethnic background or their sexual orientation, although the part that either aspect of their makeup may have played in the crime was not explored. Utilizing haunting black-and-white cinematography by Ellen Kuras, documentary footage from the period, and an often-melancholy score by James Bennett, Kalin fashioned a strangely fascinating look at the aimless lives of two young men with too much money and too much time.

Although the two youths are lovers in the physical sense, their partnership seems to have been born more of boredom than passion. Their lovemaking has eroticism, but it lacks fire. The pair performs more like two bored schoolboys passing a rainy afternoon pleasuring each other than like two men with deep emotional ties. Tragically, this passionless attraction spawns what appears to be an equally passionless crime. The plot to kidnap and murder a young boy seems to have been born of the same boredom that gave rise to Leopold's and Loeb's erotic desires. The two young men have no emotion either before or after the murder, although there is a flash of zeal on the killer's face during and shortly after the murder. The men's demeanor throughout the interrogation and trial suggests a complete lack of, not only remorse, but also comprehension that they have taken a human life. The duo bicker about the details of the crime as though they were trying to recall what they ate for breakfast. The men are distanced not only from the crime, but also from any semblance of humanity.

Appropriately, the sharp light and shade contrasts in the stark photography at times make the film resemble a silent horror film, because "Swoon" is a horror show at its core. These two men are like monsters that were created without souls and that lie in wait until idle thoughts prompt them to fill their empty hours with crime. The languid air that pervades the film underscores the tedium of their existence. Kalin tracks the two men to the ends of their lives and leaves the viewer with an ambivalent feeling about whether or not justice was ever served. Like "In Cold Blood," however, "Swoon" focuses on and almost celebrates the two killers, while the innocent young victim is reduced to a nearly anonymous figure. Thus, "Swoon" is often a difficult film to watch, yet, despite lingering and disturbing thoughts afterward, Kalin has fashioned an intelligent, intriguing work that merits attention.

What a riveting, startling and altogether masterful achievement. The idea the we're actually seeing Leopold and Loeb in person crossed my mind more than once. The illusion is overwhelming and the idea that we're seeing and hearing something that we shouldn't is part of its fascination. I loved Richard Fleischer's 1959 film from Meyer Levin's novel. I was enthralled by Dean Stockwell's performance and that's the only missing element here. Dean Stockwell. However, Tom Kalin has masterminded a narration that makes the whole thing so close to what it really must have been that the experience, for all film lovers, should be a must.

It feels like a period documentary and the story is the story of Leopold and Loeb - A terrifying portrait of two real life killers who killed without passion or reason just to prove they were above the law. The period details are beautifully drawn but where it lacks is in the actor's faces. They appear rather than participate fully. There is a detachment in their portrayal that kept me at a safe distance and I could admire it with my head but I couldn't connect with my heart. The opposite of what happened to me with 1958's Compulsion - I was riveted by Dean Stockwell. I believed and understood just by looking into his eyes.