ShowBiz Forum - messages #23144 .1

Prospero Blocks

Hot Celebrity Searches

'Grey's Anatomy'

Patrick Dempsey

'American Idol'

Sarah Jessica Parker

More Hot Searches

Chat Center

	Hot Movies Topic: Hot Movies
	The Drive-In Topic: The Drive-In

Board Folders

	Ask the Experts 1376 msgs in 79 dscns Latest: 5/5/09
	Industry News/... 5650 msgs in -132 dscns Latest: Nov-16
	Weekly ShowBiz... 4474 msgs in -101 dscns Latest: Nov-19
	Celebrity News... 11024 msgs in 550 dscns Latest: Nov-19
	TV/Movie Celebs 1961 msgs in 168 dscns Latest: Oct-10
	Music/Other Ce... 1316 msgs in 87 dscns Latest: Sep-14
	You Decide: Ho... 1322 msgs in 110 dscns Latest: Oct-18
	Movie Talk 6173 msgs in -71 dscns Latest: Nov-11
	Harvey Karten'... 2106 msgs in 803 dscns Latest: Nov-19
	World of Enter... 814 msgs in 121 dscns Latest: 9/18/08
	Home Video/DVD 1358 msgs in 234 dscns Latest: Oct-20
	Screenwriting 220 msgs in 31 dscns Latest: 5/10/07
	Theater & Music 834 msgs in 233 dscns Latest: Nov-18
	The Green Room 9445 msgs in 567 dscns Latest: Jun-2

Harvey Karten's Reviews

Review: Savage Grace

Print Discussion

#1 of 1 Posted 5/20/08 10:16 PM

From harveykarten Posts 744 Last Nov-19
To All [Msg # 23144.1 ]

SAVAGE GRACE

IFC Films
Reviewed for CompuServe by Harvey Karten
Grade: B+
Directed by: Tom Kalin
Written By: Howard A. Rodman, based on the book “Savage Grace” by Natalie Robins and Steven M.L. Aronson
Cast: Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane, Eddie Redmayne, Elena Anaya, Unax Ugalde, Belen Rueda, Hugh Dancy
Screened at: Review 1, NYC, 5/20/08
Opens: May 30, 2008

People without gobs of money cannot be blamed for envying the rich and the super-rich, which is why any film that shows that old money (or new) does not solve all problems are welcome. Tom Kalin’s “Savage Grace,” adapted by Howard A. Rodman from Natalie Robins and Steven M.L. Aronson’s book of the same time, would have us go a step further: money actually leads to discontent and worse. The story is based on true incidents in the life of Barbara Daly (Julianne Moore), who married well above her station to plastics-fortune heir Brooks Baekeland. Daly, one of the film’s two gold-diggers, aspires to the life of a socialite and, given her easy graces falls into the role so seamlessly that she arouses the envy of her more passive husband, Brooks (Stephen Dillane).

Rather than trying to do everything that the book does, “Swoon” director Kalin helms as though this were a theater piece, dividing the yarn into six acts, each a vignette that evokes emotional truths about the Baekelands. Adding luster to the piece, cinematographer Juanmi Azpiroz, perhaps influenced by Godard, helms the work with a variety of styles to capture the often melodramatic emotions on display. While an arthouse crowd could eat the film up, mainstream audiences might be put off by its treatment of incest, schizophrenia, family deterioration, attempted suicide, and death, all of which give “Savage Grace” (a title that plays with oxymoron in that the family are both sociable and violent) a motif not unlike classic tragedy’s.

Beginning in 1946 and running through 1972—with a texted epilogue that runs through 1981—“Savage Grace” projects family dysfunction between Barbara and Brooks from the time their baby Tony is born. Given the circumstances of his life, Tony could be called a poor-little-rich boy whose problems were partly of his own making but largely the fault of an indifferent father who actually steals Tony’s girlfriend, Blanca (Spanish-born Elena Anaya) and a mother whose relationship with her son is far too close.

Though the movie opens on New York’s Upper West Side, the family soon become expatriates living in Paris, London, Cadaques (Spain) and Mallorca. While on the beach in Cadaques, the teenaged Tony begins to come to grips with his homosexuality, enjoying a fling with Jake (Unax Ugalde), a hip dude with a scruffy beard and an earring whose sexual games with Tony are performed right in front of Tony’s mom, leading her later to think of a direct way to “cure” the lad. (Perhaps this is the way high society plays life’s game, but in this case, the casual nature of Tony’s liaison seems symptomatic of his decline into insanity.) To top things off, after being abandoned by her husband, Barbara takes up with the bisexual Sam (Hugh Dancy) and, when Tony finds himself as attracted to the man as does his mother, all three wind up in bed. Though Tony’s grandfather’s famous bit is wisdom is “One of the uses of money is that it allows us not to live with the consequences of our mistakes,” “Savage Grace” stands as that maxim’s forceful rebuttal.

Among the graces of the movie is Julianne Moore’s Oscar-worthy performance of a woman who tries her best to fit into the life of high society but is brought down by her temperament and, considering her attachment to Tony, by her loneliness. Relative newcomer Eddie Redmayne does fine as the rich kid with no special skills, hindered by his conflicted desire to break away from his mother’s strong emotional (later physical) embrace and his need to remain close to her. The separation into six acts is a theatrical gesture, one who does not work as well on the big screen, while the dialogue often comes across as heightened, literary language rather than the everyday banter of the characters. Though “Savage Grace” was filmed entirely in Barcelona, the sites in London, Paris and Spain look authentic, the period photography convincing.

Not Rated. 97 minutes. © 2008 by Harvey Karten Member: NY Film Critics Online

Print Discussion

Harvey Karten's Reviews

Review: Savage Grace

Adjust text size:

Interest level:

Welcome, Guest

• Post a message

• New messages to you

Find messages


Advanced Search

Prospero Blocks

	Web Offers • Find: Astrology Chart
• Cosmetic Surgery
• Madonna's Music
• Kelly Clarkson
• Angelina Jolie
• Tom Cruise

Special Offers
Show me more info on:

Finding People

• Find a Date

• White Pages

• Reverse Lookup

• Cell Phone Numbers

• Unlisted Numbers

• E-mail Addresses

• Background Checks

• People Finder

• Fine Old Friends

• Family Tree

Cool Clicks!

• Unclaimed Cash

• Free Cell Phones

• Energy Boost

• Party Planning

• Photo Sharing

• Work From Home

• Video Games

• BloggingStocks

• Horoscope Updates

• Adult (18 & Over)

© 2009 CompuServe Interactive Services, Inc. All rights reserved.

Legal Notices | Privacy Policy