Their world disintegrates precipitously, however, as Frank begins to realize that he has unresolved "issues" and Cathy develops a friendship with the "colored" gardner, Raymond (Dennis Haysbert in the Denzell Washington role). Frank goes to a doctor to "cure" his issues, while Cathy and Frank end up getting dissed by both blacks and whites.

Julianne Moore is consistently one of the best actresses working today. She is, of course, beautiful, but her intelligence and skill never overwhelm the character. She is dressed in grand Harriet Nelson style with petticoated skirts, red lipstick, pearls and high heels. She wants everything to be right and is wounded by the reality of people's assumptions and prejudices . Quaid plays against type, agonizing over inner demons he can't understand, that destroy his image of who he is in this insular, Connecticut world. He grieves for his lost self.

This is a multi-layered film. It is a story of fractured love, a story of racism and discovery in the 50's, and primarily the story of how we are deceived by the need to maintain appearances, no matter the cost. This 50's Noir movie has some genuinely comic moments - Moore's pose for the photographer by the fireplace, NAACP canvassers speaking in over-enunciated "white" dialect, Quaid exchanging glances, a neighbor crowing "We don't have any (negroes in our town)" as the invisible black waiter looks on. Moore and Quaid are restrained where they could have chewed the scenery and taken it totally over the top. There is one moment where the color of the film changes from fall's brown and orange, impending-death-overtones to bright, vivid colors, no more than 2 seconds, as Moore sees lovers kissing on a park bench. She has a vision of what could have been, but it is immediately lost.

A film is successful, in part, if I think about the characters after I leave the theater, think about who they are and what they mean to each other and to me. In that way, this film is a success. I liked Frank's confused, tortured honesty. I liked Cathy's combination of vulnerability and strength. It has that short-story sort of ending, however, that is forever unresolved. It is worth seeing, especially to witness Moore and Quaid's nuanced, perfectly pitched performances and to see the 50"s, if not as it really was, then at least, how we remember.
12:42:35 AM    Comments?()