Shame Review, Rewritten
2011, 101 minutes
Rated NC-17 for some explicit sexual content
Some films are
like pieces of candy: empty calories.
Some are like a breakfast bar: nutritious and satisfying. Some others, however, are like a new flavor: unconventional
and fascinating. One such film is the
second feature film by co-writer/director Steve McQueen, Shame.
Shame stars Michael Fassbender as Brandon, a
successful man in his thirties who has a sex addiction and is unable to have a
meaningful romantic relationship. One day, Brandon returns to his apartment to
find that his self-destructive sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan), has moved
in. As Sissy stays longer and longer, we
learn more and more about Brandon, and we see both of their lives spiral out of
control.
The most
striking aspect of Shame is its
performances, particularly that of the incredibly versatile Michael
Fassbender. I typically get bored after
seeing an actor in multiple films in one year, but Fassbender has such a
magnetic screen presence and is such chameleon that I relish every opportunity
I get to watch him turn into another character.
Playing such varied roles this past year as Magneto in X-Men: First Class and Carl Jung in A
Dangerous Method, he strikes again with a brilliant performance as
Brandon. In Shame, Fassbender creates an interesting personality using very little
dialogue, an approach others have used recently to great effect (e.g. Javier
Bardem in Biutiful). Fassbender uses his face to convey volumes of
emotion, building despair and shame. In
one scene, Brandon is sitting in his room, trying to avoid the sounds of Sissy
making love with his boss. Curling up on
his bed in the corner of his room, we see a pained expression on Brandon’s face
that suggests a troubled past. Though
not specifically mentioned in the film, Brandon and Sissy’s characters are
developed in ways reminiscent of those with a past of sexual abuse. Brandon has been unable to satisfy his sex
addiction since Sissy moved in, making him increasingly desperate – a man in
active withdrawal. This scene, among
many others in the film, epitomizes the genius of Fassbender. Without saying a single word, I could hear
his voice.
Fassbender’s
performance is matched only by the direction of Steve McQueen. McQueen, coming off of his critical success Hunger (also starring Michael
Fassbender), has created a vision and a style all his own. McQueen makes the film as realistic and raw
as possible, and he achieves this through long takes while keeping tight
control over the film. In a scene when Brandon is on a date at a restaurant,
McQueen sets the camera by the table and films a large portion of the meal with
no edits. This realism emphasizes the
rawness of this story. I felt like a fly
on the wall while watching Shame.
Shame’s screenplay, co-written by Steve McQueen and Abi Morgan,
adds to the genius of the film. The
beginning and end are like bookends, an elliptical structure befitting of the
rest of the story. Each scene is
completely wordless as facial expressions take the place of dialogue, conveying
a large message with a hard impact. For the screenwriters to use a
dialogue-free method to show the meaning of their film is impressive. In an age
where movies must have rapid-fire dialogue to keep audiences interested, it is
comforting to see that some writers don’t feel the need to conform.
Shame is a film built on ironies. In the beginning Brandon tries to seduce a
woman by simply looking at her. He
believes that she is flirting with him and fails to notice her wedding ring. Yet, when Brandon confronts Sissy about her
affair with his boss later in the film, he yells at her for not noticing his boss’s
wedding ring. Subtle ironies such as
these add to the power of the film as they add humanity to the characters. With these ironies, the film says that
addiction can only be controlled when the addict can step back and gain some
perspective on his actions. If not, he
will be as lost as Brandon and Sissy.
Even though
this film was nearly perfect, it did have one minor flaw: the pacing was a bit
slow in parts. For example, an overlong
take of Brandon jogging briefly lost my attention – a minor flaw in a major
film.
Shame is the equivalent to a new food that is
unique and distinctive. I had witnessed
a dark and intense aspect of humanity. By the end, I was full.
4/4
-Joshua Handler
