Affliction

"Affliction" doesn't have an immediate plot. It's mostly a delve into a man's (Nick Nolte) psyche, a divorced alcoholic man who was abused as a child by his drunken father (James Coburn). He tries to cope, he tries to make something of himself by attempting to solve a hunting accident which he thinks is really a murder. He claims that after this, everyone will remember him as a hero.

Luckily the audience isn't made to believe Nolte's cause, to us he looks just as mad as he does to the characters around them. This is well done, because it could've been presented as some big twist at the end.

Anyway, the "mystery" element to the film isn't that important. It's mostly about how hard - and almost impossible - it is to prevent an emotionally abused man to make the same mistakes his father made. This idea is presented well, but by the end it just feels so thick and depressing that it's hard to take anything from the film, because you don't want to remember it.

Acting-wise the movie is quite good. Nolte delivers what I think is his best performance here, with a quiet desperation wonderfully put out by his eyes, voice, face, and so on. James Coburn does his usual well, but I have to question just why he won an Oscar for this. Don't get me wrong, he was a terrific actor and his performance in this is great, but he's not in many scenes, and the scenes he is in are mostly just a variation of the same thing: Coburn drunkenly and violently mumbles at his sons and eventually starts to yell and thrash. This is all well and good, but his scenes never go beyond that, except for (maybe) at the end when he spews his own sort of twisted philosophy to Nolte.

Other great performances come from Sissy Spacek as Nolte's increasingly uneasy girlfriend. Also Willem Dafoe as Nolte's brother who is so concerned with being quiet and not problematic that he cant prevent the build-up of violence and abuse in his family. I'd say that this performance is more Oscar worthy than Coburn's.

This is a good movie with a great message, but it doesn't put enough on the table, 7/10.

For what is considered a small, independent film, this movie is packed with brilliant performances by two great actors. James Coburn is the dark, angry patriarch of an abusive household, whose abuse and anger are inherited by his son(Nolte). The story is told by the youngest brother (played mainly in voice-over and a small cameo by Willem Dafoe), and traces the events of a small town murder investigation that leads to the mental collapse of Nolte's cop character. The film weaves us through a buffet of sub-plots and bit characters (including a nice appearance by Sissy Spacek), which is at times whish-washed. However the tone and style of the film are quite fresh and unique.

Penned and directed by Paul Schrader, who will probably always be known for writing "Taxi Driver", the film is a stylish take of what is most likely a much better novel. The tone is cold and dark, and serves as the perfect backdrop for the anger and isolation of the two "male" characters. In my opinion, the voice-over narration takes away from the feeling the picture leaves, basically serving the purpose to tell us what to feel. The images and performances on the screen do a fine job in dong that on it's own, without re-enforcment. On a whole, the film is powerful and moving, and is a great look into the heart and soul of lives that are truely tortured. I would recommend this film if for no other reason than to see the brilliant performances of James Coburn (Oscar winner) and Nick Nolte (Oscar nominee).

I have seen this movie in bits and pieces, because it was difficult for me to watch it all the way through and digest it all at one time.

Paul Schrader's movies can have a dark, unsettling edge to them, and this movie is no exception.

Maybe because I brought personal baggage to the table while watching this, is why this movie gripped me so much. I have alcoholic relatives in my immediate and extended family, and I have seen what their anger and destructive behavior hath wrought.

Nick Nolte and James Coburn's characters made me squirm. Coburn received a best supporting Oscar for his role, and it is well-deserved. His character is a mean, vengeful, hateful alcoholic who inflicts his pain on others and afflicts one of his sons, Wade, played by Nick Nolte.

Very gripping and intense family drama.

Paul Schrader's adaptation of Russell Banks's "Affliction" has got to be one of the bleakest movies that I've ever seen. Most of the characters are people whom you can respect, but James Coburn's character makes you feel like your stomach just turned to water.

Wade Whitehouse (Nick Nolte) is a cop in a small New England town investigating a hunting accident which he believes is a murder. He hopes that it might make him the town hero, but several conditions work against everyone. First and foremost is Wade's alcoholic, abusive father (Coburn). Pretty much anytime that we see his father, the man is still drinking and being as nasty as possible to everyone around him. Wade's brother (Willem Dafoe) is too afraid to speak his mind. Wade's hubby (Sissy Spacek) is simply getting nervous about everything around her. And the ending isn't what you might guess.

The winter setting is just the opposite of how movies usually employ snow. Far from any winter wonderland, the setting backs up Wade's depressed mindset affected by his upbringing. Everything in this movie has the purpose of making you feel like there's a lead weight on every square centimeter of your body, and they succeed. I do think that it's a good movie, but just be forewarned of what kind of movie this is. Even if you sympathize with the characters, you feel like there's a knife in your lungs.

Worth seeing.

Wade Whitehouse is a policeman in a snowy New Hampshire hamlet. Divorced, depressed and nursing a burgeoning drinking problem, he isn't what one would call mentally stable. He lives in the shadow of his abusive father, Glen, a brutal arch-manipulator who makes it his business to belittle Wade at every turn. As Wade investigates a supposedly accidental shooting, he becomes obsessively convinced that there is more to the crime than meets the eye. As the case intensifies- and his father's cruelty continues to erode his sanity- Wade falls into a violent spiral of madness from which he can never return.

Written and directed by Paul Schrader- and based on the novel of the same name by Russell Banks- 'Affliction' is a tense, tough psychological thriller that examines the devastating effects of abuse on the psyche. The film shows in subtle detail how years of disparagement and violence can destroy someone mentally, leading to psychosis and an inevitable breakdown. The characters involved are routinely believable, both in terms of writing and performance, and Schrader never resorts to sensationalism to further the narrative. It is a stark piece of realism in many respects, giving credo to Shakespeare's line that "the sins of the father are to be laid upon the children."

'Affliction' is a visually striking, heavily atmospheric venture boasting fine cinematography from Paul Sarossy. He shoots the landscape to heighten its drabness- its never-ending scope- in a manner most effective. At times it is reminiscent of 'Fargo,' with the snow- pervasive and claustrophobic- covering everything in sight, obscuring the dangers lurking 'neath the surface. Sarossy's utilization of space in interior shots is arresting, and the way he captures a pivotal scene involving a tooth and a pliers is intensely visceral, uncomfortable and unforgettable.

Unforgettable too are the performances from the cast. Nick Nolte stars as Wade, giving an intense performance that ranks alongside his very best. Brooding and fidgety, he is a bundle of insecurities and impulses, a complicated man if ever there was one. Nolte brings this character to life in a way that is terrifically understated, yet undeniably powerful; never resorting to theatrics or verging into overacting. Just as Dennis Hopper was Frank Booth or De Niro Travis Bickle, so too is Nick Nolte Wade Whitehouse- no-one could be better for the role.

The same can be said for James Coburn, co-starring as Glen- he is pitch-perfect. Coburn has never been so frightening on screen and, like a mad tsar, he revels in his depravity. Clearly having the time of his life, he delivers what may be his finest on-screen performance, creating in Glen a man so insidious and vile watching him may make your skin actually crawl. He and Nolte work together brilliantly and you don't doubt for a minute that they share a complicated, dark history. Coburn rightly won the Oscar for his performance- it is a true tour-de-force.

Also starring are Sissy Spacek and Willem Dafoe, as Wade's girlfriend Margie and his brother Rolfe, respectively. Spacek has never given a bad performance on screen, and creates in Margie a kind, considerate and (above all else) patient woman- the only source of goodness in Wade's cold world. She is marvelous, consistently underplaying it and leaving an indelible impression on the viewer. Dafoe too is excellent, though his character is underutilized and- arguably- a little underwritten. He doesn't have enough screen time to make something interesting out of Rolfe; but does fine work nevertheless.

Paul Schrader's 'Affliction' is a brilliant, sinister thriller, dealing with mature themes in an interesting, subtle way. Boasting a fascinatingly intense central performance from Nick Nolte, as well as a career best one from co-star James Coburn, it is a film that will have you on the edge of your seat throughout its run. Tense, violent and unpredictable, 'Affliction' is a shockingly raw and naturalistic portrait of a man's descent into madness that one cannot recommend more highly.