 | In the Bedroom Starring: Sissy Spacek, Tom Wilkinson, Marisa Tomei, Nick Stahl |
Director Todd Field shows great skill and craftsmanship with his debut film, "In The Bedroom". This dark, human drama is a suspenseful, gripping tale of raw emotional power. Like Dostoyevsky, Field likes to take ordinary people, put them into overwhelming circumstances and watch what happens. As the film unfolds it becomes more of a mystery and you are taken into strange, unknown territory. It's a mesmerising film that captivates with a sense of underlying doom. In addition, Sissy Spacek, Tom Wilkinson, and Marisa Tomei deliver some of the best performances on film this year. "In The Bedroom" is a stunning achievement for Field and his extraordinary cast. The film takes place in the small Maine town of Camden. Matt Fowler (Wilkinson) is the friendly town doctor. Fowler's wife, Ruth (Spacek) is the High School Choir teacher. The tale begins as the Fowler's son, Frank (Stahl), is visiting home during the summer before entering graduate school in architecture. Everything is picture perfect for this close, loving family except for son Frank's summer affair with an older, recently separated single mom, Natalie Strout (Tomei). When Frank begins to fall in love and speaks of dropping graduate school, mother Ruth becomes concerned. In a split second, something happens that turns this film upside down. Hitchcock couldn't have done this as well. Suddenly, our perfect family is faced with an unthinkable horror. Ruth becomes filled with angry bitterness. Spacek's smouldering hatred almost melts the screen. Considering that she has very little dialogue to convey her emotions, Spacek uses silence, body language, endless smoking and staring into a TV set to send her emotional message loud and clear. Her husband Matt is a bit more difficult to sense. His character comes across as controlled yet distant. The couple begins to build a wall to insulate them from the dark dread that seems to await them in the near future. Director Field understands the power of silence and imagery to give the film a tense, eerie quality. Tomei gives her finest film performance to date. When Natalie confronts Ruth at the wrong moment, the emotions are felt not heard. As the wall crumbles between Dr. Matt and wife Ruth, emotions explode and the film takes its final turn into an uncertain world of darkness and grief. Film acting doesn't get any better than this! While "In The Bedroom" is a suspenseful drama, it is also one of the more humanistic films of 2001. Field allows his actors to dig deep into their characters and deliver a truth that is almost too real. "In The Bedroom" is both disturbing and rewarding for its honesty and quiet power. Certainly the movie is a top contender for Picture of the Year and its first rate performances will no doubt gather many Oscar nominations. |