In the Bedroom

Ahh, January. Is there a better time of the year for us film-geeks? Everywhere you look, Oscar contenders, star-studded movies and stellar performances. The latest foray to the theatres was In the Bedroom, a drama about a family in rural Maine.

Relative newcomer Nick Stahl plays Frank Fowler, a young college-bound man who spends his last summer at home fishing and dating an older woman, Natalie Strout (a surprisingly good Marisa Tomei). The problem? Well, it turns out Natalie has two kids and an ex-husband who isn't too happy about this new relationship, which leads to increasingly violent confrontations between the two men. In itself, an interesting story with solid performances that probably could have carried the movie by itself.

The real strength of this film, however, is Sissy Spacek and Tom Wilkenson who play Frank's concerned parents, and how the events in their son's life affect them. You will hear lots of talk in the next few months about Spacek's performance and likely an Oscar is in her near future, but to me, it's just the choice of a sentimental favourite. Don't get me wrong; she does a wonderful job, but her screen time is quite limited in comparison to Tom Wilkinson and he, to be honest, steals the show.

In the first half hour of this film, I thought In the Bedroom was a decent movie, but nothing special, until Wilkinson took over, and from that point on dominated scene after scene in what I consider one of the strongest performances of the year. Without saying too much more about the plot of the movie, suffice it to say that Wilkinson takes you through the full range of emotions, and you can't help but be focused on the presence he exudes throughout.

This movie was so well done, I felt as if I were an outsider, looking through someone's window. Then the tragedy occurs, we were treated to what probably would have happened after a crime of passion, the imprecision of the evidence, the lack of a witness, and the ability of the perpetrator to avoid prosecution. Mostly the movie is about acting. Sissy Spacek is amazing, so tightly wound and in control. Her somewhat passive husband becomes her foil until the fuse is lit. Then it all comes to a head. I can't imagine living through something like this where your allies become so worthless. There is a scene where the prosecuting attorney jingles his change and looks at his watch while spouting a bunch of meaningless jargon about justice. The father goes catatonic while this is happening. Things play out like they do in life; there are no winners and no losers.

The use of sound in the film was interesting. Background noise was used to tell the story as much as as the filming angles. This gave the movie a compelling dimension of claustrophobia for the main characters as though everything was closing in on them.

The sound aspect perfected a sense of distraction or lack of concentration that many people may feel after a tragedy. Of course the obvious scene is where the Dr. Fowler is speaking to the DA. The focus of the camera captures the movement of the DA's mouth, then the jingling of the keys in the DA's pocket. Another not-so-obvious scene is when Dr. Fowler visits Natalie in the country store. The footsteps, the creaking of the floor boards, and the beeping noises from the cash register all create the sense that both Natalie and Dr. Fowler want to lash out at creators of those noises.

Sometimes, it's fun to go see a movie without having any expectations, or even having knowledge of the basic plot or premise. It's also nice to see a movie that would usually get ignored in a crowded market get a large amount of attention without having the plot be too obvious from trailers or commercials. Although In the Bedroom has been in theatres for a number of months, it's only recently started getting attention and positive word of mouth after Sissy Spacek's Golden Globe nomination.

Tom Wilkinson plays Dr. Matt Fowler and Sissy Spacek plays his music teacher wife, an older couple living in a small Maine fishing town, who become worried when their only son becomes involved with an older woman with two kids, played by Marisa Tomei. Their worries soon prove to be warranted, as the woman and her estranged husband proceed to destroy the teenager's life. Ultimately, it has a devastating effect on the couple's everyday life and their relationship.

This movie is a fascinating and powerful character study of people in a small town and how conflict and tragedy affect them. It is a story that takes place in three clear-cut acts separated by two twists, both of which take the viewer by surprise although they're both foreshadowed and somewhat expected.

It's hard not to compare this movie to the recently released Monster's Ball, one of my least favorite movies of last year, but it's a fair comparison, since it also showed a series of tragic and sudden events and how they affect the people in a small town. Unlike Monster's Ball, I found the actions and emotions of the characters in this movie to be a lot more plausible, and you can't help feeling the despair of the couple as they deal with their son's problems.

In the Bedroom also compares to last year's The Deep End, and Sam Raimi's underrated A Simple Plan, two other slow movies that dealt with how small town folk deal with problems and how those problems sometimes lead to more drastic actions. It's never clear whether the Fowlers disapprove of their son's relationship is because the woman is older and has two kids or because of the problems that her estranged husband brings to the relationship. At times, it seems like the Fowlers' only worry is that their son may not go to college in order to stick around and take care of his older lover and her kids.

Either way, the parents starts to drift apart due to their overpowering sense of grief and inability to change things, and it's not long before they're playing the blame game on who is responsible for their son's situation. When they finally explode, it's one of the most powerful film moments in recent memory. The shorter third act shows how they learn to cope and deal with their problems.

Despite the slow pace and the excessive length, the performances and the beautiful yet subdued camerawork and choice of setting keeps the viewer riveted to the screen.

It's been far too long since we've seen Sissy Spacek in a movie, and like this year's other comeback kid, Robert Redford, her age is showing. But her age also makes her perfect for the role of Ruth Lawler, as her world -weary eyes seem suitably representative of Ruth's own frustrations.

Like last year's The Deep End and The Others, this movie shows how an over-protective mother can alienate her children while trying to help them. Spacek gives another groundbreaking performance that shows talented yet less experienced actresses Tilda Swinton. Nicole Kidman and especially Halle Berry how to create realistic emotions on screen. Late in the movie, there is a particularly tense yet short confrontation between Spacek and Marisa Tomei that shows how much better these two actresses are.

Tom Wilkinson has played comedic parts in The Full Monty and has appeared in a number of period pieces including Sense and Sensibility and The Patriot. In the Bedroom proves him to be quite a talented dramatic lead actor, as his performance allows him the full range of emotions, and he creates a character as believable and real as Spacek's.

First-time director Todd Field is probably best known as playing Nick Nightingale, the pianist who gets Tom Cruise in a bit of trouble in Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut. Field uses the Maine setting beautifully to create a portrait of the couple's life, and he uses the pacing to create insurmountable tension before driving a wedge between the couple. The script by Field and Robert Festinger is one of the better ones of the year with dialogue that is far too real, yet perfectly suited for talents such as Spacek and Wilkinson.

Obviously, this movie will be getting a good deal of Oscar attention due to the performances by Spacek, Wilkinson, Tomei, and the terrific script. If you want to see action, go see Blackhawk Down; if you want to see the fine form of filmmaking as perfected by two master thespians and a talented new director, than In the Bedroom will have you riveted to the screen. Rating: 9 out of 10

I really liked "In the Bedroom" the first time I saw it. It's a movie with a monster who does not look like a monster. I recently watched the ending and appreciated the craft of the entire crew, especially the director in the choices he made. For me the movie is not about the crimes committed or who are your friends when times are bad, rather it's about that little monster that we have inside of us that when given the chance will choose for us to be and do unthinkable things.

There are a lot movies that I've seen that never warrant a second look, much less a third or fourth. That's because the director has played all of his/her cards right up front. Once you seen the movie once there is nothing else to see. With "In the Bedroom" I noticed the quiet, there was no constant music theme interrupting my thoughts. I noticed the performances of Wilkinson, Spacek and Marisa Tomei.. The Tomei role intrigued me. I remembered her best as Lisa Bonet cocky room mate in the first season of TV sitcom "A Different World". I noticed the crabs and the town, how there seemed be no diversity.

My second look, had me pay closer attention to monster, played with perfection by Sissy Spacek. Even in her mid fifties Sissy Spacek is cute and we all had cute monsters in our life. Monsters are things that a far more relentless then we are. Monsters get what they want, with out ever compromising. They are unreasonable, like Javier Bardem in "No Country for Old Men" or Daniel Day-Lewis, in "There Will Be Blood". Movies where the monster wins leaves the audience dissatisfied, but will to go back and take another look. My most recent look got me paying attention to the scenery, how beautiful old towns, bay views, dense forest and sea ports are. That no matter how beautiful nature is, it is relentless and will get its way.