Zirhcing @ Nature

Zirhcing --> Nature --> My Polar Magnetism --> Hong Kong Film Festival 2003

...Having good films is like enjoying a delicious meal in a nice restaurant...

13. Spider

Director - David Cronenberg
Cast - Ralph Fiennes, Miranda Richardson, Gabriel Byrne
Canada/UK 2002 Colour 98min

"Swapping special effects for "mental effect", Cronenberg's vision is at his most deliriously imaginative and irredeemably dark. This he pours into one Dennis Cleg, a.k.a. Spider - a schizophrenic discharged from the asylum and sent to lodge in a grotty halfway house in London's East End. He revisits scenes of his childhood, traumatised by murderous memories of his burly plebian father, his gentle mother and a drunken floosy. To unravel the warp and woof of where his delusions lead, so entangled in twisted complexes, is too intricate for words. Just imagine a dialogue between Freud and Beckett on the set of Pinter's The Caretaker, with Murnau eavesdropping backstage, and you get the idea."

I watched the film with much expectation, simply because of his previous great works. I like very much the style of Cronenberg, and his study to the conscious and subconscious mentality has long been my interest as well. This time, he brought us an inner world of a schizophrenic patient that was also magnificent. The best of the movie attributed to the creation of the dark atmosphere, and throughout the film, the story was viewed from the perspective of Spider who blurred the reality with memory. Ralph Fiennes was playing very good in the film too. The camera Cronenberg has used was just in the right place throughout the movie. This is yet another good work from the idol this time in the festival. (8.5/10)

[Also refer to the novel "Spider" by Patrick McGrath, and the Interview with Cronenberg and McGrath at http://www.abc.net.au/arts/film/stories/s660704.htm]

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Other Films ...
01. The Doll
02. Salome
03. The Son (Le Fils)
04. 17 Times Cecile Cassard
05. Seaside (Bord de mer)
06. Tycoon (Un nouveau russe)
07. A Snake of June (Rokugatsu No Hebi)
08. Fists in the Pocket (I pugni in tasca)
09. Parlez-moi d'amour
10. Noi Albinoi
11. Morning Sun
12. 10 Minutes Older: The Trumpet
13. Spider
14. Lundi Matin (Monday Morning)
15. 10 Minutes Older: The Cello
16. Auto Focus

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