Queer Review: Velvet Goldmine (1998)

Velvet Goldmine
Director: Todd Haynes
Writers: James Lyons and Todd Haynes
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Christian Bale, Toni Collette, Eddie Izzard, Micko Westmoreland

Overview
Velvet Goldmin is a triumph of style over substance and with a confusing plot to boot, thereby making the best part the glam rock soundtrack.

Synopsis
Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) was 70's glam rock biggest star, until a mock assassination ruins his career. Ten years later, reporter Arthur Stuart (Christian Bale) is given the task of finding out the motivation behind Slade's assassination stunt. Stuart starts by tracking down those who knew Slade and interviewing them, hoping to find out what happened to Slade after his career crashed and burned under stranger circumstances then the Roswell UFO. What follows is a psychadelic journey through several stages of Slade's career, as the plot jumps through time, place, and logical loop holes.

The Queering
Movies that focus on style over substance often have confusing plots and Velvet Goldmine is no exception. The movie jumps back and forth between time periods, making it nearly impossible to know what characters we are dealing with in a particular scene or understand how each one is related to each other. This situation is aggravated by the fact that most of the 70's characters look a lot alike. While Velvet Goldmine never sinks to the same depths as Querelle, a little more coherency would have been greatly appreciated. I am not sure if another viewing would have cleared matters up, but to blunt, I have no plans on doing that any time soon.

There are numerous references in Velvet Goldmine to other artists and works of art. Oscar Wilde is frequently quoted and McGegor's Curt Wild, a rocker whose original act included stripping naked in front of a live audience before setting the stage on fire, is clearly based upon grunge icon Kurt Cobain. Brian Slade is a David Bowie clone. In better works of art, these sort of references and allusions can make a good story great, and great story sublime, but in a mediocre one like Velvet Goldmine, they only serve to make Todd Hayne's film appear more like a pretentious rip-off then it actually is.

Speaking of Todd Haynes, I have to admit to being disappointed, as I expected a stronger effort from the director of Far From Heaven. Of course, the success of the later film can probably be chalked up to Hayne's greater experience, but I should probably avoid such judgements until I can see the rest of his films.

As for the technical elements, the cinematography of Velvet Goldmine manages to conjure up some memorable imagery. On the negative side, the soundtrack during the musical sequences is never lined up quite right, thereby making it obvious that the actors are lip syncing. This is unfortunate as the best part of Velvet Goldmine is the grooving soundtrack.

I found watching Velvet Goldmine to be a frustrating experience. The confusion caused by the surreal style and plot jumps undermines any potential the material might have had. In short, there is no goldmine, velvet or otherwise, to be found here, only bits of bronze nuggets from other, better works of art.

Recommendation
Not the worst movie in existence, but I would personally recommend buying the soundtrack instead.

The Rating

Trailer



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Queer Review: Far From Heaven (2002)

Far From Heaven
Director: Todd Haynes
Writer: Todd Haynes
Cast: Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, Patricia Clarkson

Overview
A melodrama made in the middle of the first decade of the 21st Century, Far From Heaven is director Todd Haynes' homage to the soap operas of Douglas Sirk.

Synopsis
On the surface, the Whitiker family appear to be a normal and well adjusted family living in 1950s Connecticut. However the family patriarch Frank (Dennis Quaid) has a problem, namely a desire to have sex with men in a time and place when any "unnatural" sexual hunger is highly taboo and when he acts upon it, he finds himself trouble with the law. While Frank begins undergoing treatment, his wife Cathy (Julianne Moore) finds her world shaken and her only other source of support in a close friend Eleanore Fine (Patricia Clarkson). Eventually, Cathy finds herself turning to comfort from a black man, Raymond Deagan (Dennis Haysbert) only to find out that racism was not limited to a Jimmie Crowe in the south. When her friends find out, Cathy finds herself going from a respected party host to social leper.

The Queering
It is clear from watching Far From Heaven that Todd Haynes went to extraordinary lengths to capture the look and feel of a film made during the 1950's. Take away the sub-plot with Frank struggling with his sexuality and Far From Heaven could have been made during the height of the Hays Code. Colours are garishly overstated with greens and purples taking prominence. Visually, this creates a rather memorable look and the Oscar nomination cinematographer Edward Lachman garnered for his work here was highly deserved.

Overall, this is a strong movie, although not a great one. I admired what director Todd Haynes accomplished here but did not always find myself enthralled with it. Haynes clearly has a gift for drawing out most subtle work from his actors and establishing the right mood for a scene. Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Patricia Clarkson, and Dennis Haysbert all give sublime performances. The main quibble I had with the acting was not the fault of any of the performers, but I did keep expecting Dennis Haysbert, who is now the Progressive insurance company spokesperson, to turn around and try to sell car insurance to Cathy.

The most compelling aspect of Far From Heaven is Cathy's journey from respected party host to social leper and the sub-plot with the greatest interest - at least to a queer audience - is regulated to the background. The main plot of course is Cathy's struggles with racism and other McCarthy era prejudices. While one senses that Haynes was intending to make a connection between racism and homophobia, he never explicitly does so, at least not in the way Philadelphia did.

Most movies present the greatest danger from racism as being the violence faced by racial minorities and ignore the damage done by the social and institutional bigotry that has always existed in this country. Far From Heaven takes a different approach, not only is it set in a northern state, but shows how much damage can be wrought by this societal cancer, not by showing the violence, but rather how both Cathy and Raymond are forced to suffer by the rules that ultimately force them apart. Similarly, Frank is also never subjected to actual violence but the psychological harm from the repression that he has undergone shows in every aspect of Quaid's performance.

Overall, this is an interesting film with a lot going for it, even if at times I was never really drawn into the characters struggles. I felt more often then not, that I really was watching the characters through a barrier of more then 50 years. However, given the parameters that Haynes forced himself to work within, what he actually accomplished is commendable.

Recommendation
Strongly recommended. This movie is not quite so far from heaven as the title suggests.

The Rating

Trailer


Want to find a review of a particular work? Check out the Title Index, the archive of all reviews posted listed alphabetically.