John Hurt – captioned

aplantage — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 14:04:28 +0000

“You dreamt that a monster will burst from your chest in the year 2122?”

: With Pamela Franklin in SINFUL DAVEY

“Damn. Her hair is more impressive than mine.”

With Samantha Eggar in THE SEAGULL

[Director's voice:] “John, darling, would you please try not to look so worried?

I’m sure she won’t bite.”

With Samantha Eggar in THE SEAGULL

“How dare he fall asleep on me! I’m Julie Christie!”

With Julie Christie in IN SEARCH OF GREGORY

“You know, he even fell asleep on Julie Christie!”

In SINFUL DAVEY

“Oh, John, I’m so happy for you! You got the role of the Marshmallow Man in GHOSTBUSTERS!?”

With Suzanna Hamilton in 1984

“Mr Ollivander has finally found the perfect witch for his wand.”

With current wife Anwen Rees-Myers

“So I spent all my money on wine, women and song – but I WILL NOT cut out coupons!”

John Hurt in his home in Kenya in 1988

AFTER DARKNESS (1985)

aplantage — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 04:37:49 +0000

++++++THIS FILM IS RATED R++++++THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS++++++

AFTER DARKNESS is a Swiss television movie from 1985, which fortunately (and surprisingly) was issued on DVD a few years ago. Judging from user reviews on the internet, most people who have seen it are very impressed by it, but also rather puzzled. Since I found very intriguing myself and felt that I might have some clarifications to contribute, I thought that a review might be worthwhile.

Peter (John Hurt) is a professor of anthropology, who seems to be living an ordinary life with his wife (Pamela Salem) and their young daughter. But he also has a younger brother, Laurence (Julian Sands), who has been committed to a psychiatric hospital because he suffers from schizophrenia. Laurence is tormented by visions of his twin brother Jan, who was killed in quicksand as a child. When Laurence attempts to kill himself for the third time, because he believes that this is Jan’s wish, Peter decides to care for Laurence himself. He rents a huge, empty apartment for his brother and himself to live in. A female student of Peter’s, Pascale (Victoria Abril) happens to find out what he is doing and becomes entangled in the lives of the two men. Laurence falls in love with her, whereas Peter’s attitude wavers between aggressive sexual attraction and resentment. Pascale mistrusts Peter and wants to help Laurence become independent of him. The “triangle” ends in tragedy: Peter kills Pascale, upon which Laurence kills Peter.

Firstly, it seems to be a common misunderstanding that the twin brother Jan is only imagined, as Peter claims. This is definitely not the case, because Pascale finds a photo of the two boys, which reveals to her that Peter is lying.

Secondly, even though Peter increasingly unravels, it is not accurate to say that he becomes insane through contact with his brother. Almost the opposite is true: there is certainly a disposition for schizophrenia in Laurence (he had hallucinations even before his twin brother’s death), but Peter is the prime cause of his current state. This explains Peter’s guilt feelings, which are shown from the beginning (e.g. he is almost killed in a car crash because he is distracted by a Virgin Mary figure). He knows that what he is doing is wrong, and even how manipulative he is, because he wants to hide what he is doing and does not want to be objected to the same methods of “observation” himself.

The core problem is that Peter has been sexually obsessed with his brother Laurence from childhood and that he killed Jan (or at least did not try to save him) out of jealousy. This is suggested by his behavior towards the children (following and photographing them) and their fear of him, his later dreams (Pascale turns into Laurence during a sexual fantasy) and his behavior towards his brother (he walks in on him when he masturbates and does not leave). Finally, he kills Pascale for the same reason – jealousy. He even says that he and Laurence “stayed together until dark” after Jan’s death; how far the sexual abuse actually went is not explicit, but Peter’s desires are clear enough.

As a critic of Psychoanalysis, I find it very commendable that the trauma is presented as real rather than just as a hallucination or wish fulfillment of the victim. However, it is somewhat problematic that the actors are very alluring, and that Peter’s dreams are not only erotic in a relatively normal adult way, but are presented in an aestheticized and titillating manner. This not only makes the story more difficult to understand, but it also undermines the abusiveness. This is a common problem of depictions of sexual abuse, especially visual depictions. Contrast this with the clumsy way Laurence tries to have sex with Pascale as well as Peter’s crude sexual assault on her, which is more realistic and arguably less of a turn-on for the viewer.

Perhaps the reason why few people seem to have understood the core problem is that in order to create suspense and a surprise twist Peter is portrayed as a bit too “normal” in the beginning (job, wife, child etc.). This makes it seem as if his troubles started with caring for his brother, almost like the “contagion” of the possessed subjects that he studies as an anthropologist (a choice of profession that is in line with his voyeuristic tendencies). On the contrary, Peter’s obsession is the dark side of his motivation to “help” Laurence in the first place. I do not know how realistic it is that Peter is able to function relatively well otherwise and that his obsession carries on into Laurence’s adulthood. On the other hand, Laurence’s schizophrenia has conserved him in a childlike state, which Peter seeks to perpetuate (in contrast to Pascale), and he even regresses himself (in the games he plays with his brother).

The only thing that disturbs the consistency of this explanation is the scene with the psychic child, the subject in an anthropological study who talks as if she were able to read Laurence’s mind or were channeling Jan’s ghost. The incident serves to alert Pascale that Peter has a problem, because he reacts to the child’s words with fear, but it is definitely not just Peter’s hallucination (because it is documented on tape), and it is too elaborate to be mere coincidence. This is the only detail where the filmmakers seem to have been unable to decide whether they were making a supernatural horror film or a realistic psychological drama (or both – about a schizophrenic haunted by a ghost), so it comes across more as a mistake rather than as an interesting ambiguity.

The significance of the line “Do I stand before the King?”, which is repeated several times throughout, is not explained (as far as I can tell). Apart from being a frequent phrase in the Bible (referring to God as the “King of Heaven”), it may be a reference to DON CARLOS. The Grand Inquisitor asks this question of the King, who is plotting to kill a family member (his son though, not his brother, but the theme of intrigue, guilt and inquisition might be the connection). Laurence’s wish of wanting to drown is probably connected with the seaside and Jan’s sinking into the sand as if it were water. I do not quite know what to make of Laurence’s vision of people turning into ice. It seems to appear when Laurence is subjected to excessive, inappropriate emotional demands of others (his mother’s, Peter’s), to which he reacts with fear (so in a sense, he is actually the one who freezes up). Again, contrary to psychoanalytic interpretations, it is quite realistic that some elements of fantasies are simply random and purely idiosyncratic, rather than have a specific origin and meaning, so perhaps none is intended.

The father seems to have left the family after an argument, and one wonders what became of the mother. Perhaps the twins and the older brother are half-siblings, because they are far apart in age and look so dissimilar. I would have liked to know a bit more about this; perhaps there was something in the script that did not make it into the finished film.

Finally, I do not understand why some people regard the film as ending on a positive note, even though Laurence is seen leaving the house, which expresses some independence. He is hardly ready to take care of himself, and it is likely that he will be the prime suspect for one or even both killings. And even though it may help him to have understood something of the true nature of his brother, he has not only suffered the loss of another loved-one, he now carries the guilt of having killed a brother himself. But perhaps one should not elaborate on a story beyond what is seen (or written).

The visuals are imaginative and the creation of mood is very well done for such a low-budget film. Abril is lovely, with the right mix of sensitivity, curiosity and intrepidness. Sands, despite his impressive stature, projects the necessary childlike beauty, helplessness and innocence (his voice and speech seem a bit too mature, cultivated and untroubled though). Hurt is fantastic, as usual, and this role, for once, gives him lots to do (such as chasing Laurence around as Quasimodo – a role he once turned down). His character’s desires, anguish and cruelty are all there from the beginning – they just unfold. Hurt is even able to make his character somewhat sympathetic, by playing him as if, despite his manipulations, he were helplessly watching his own monstrosity. Hurt’s striking eyes, which are impenetrable, yet convey the impression that they are desperately trying to see, are photographed to great effect (strangely, they look not only darker, but larger than usual), almost like a focal point of the film’s theme, the contrast of vision vs. truth. As a fan of the actor (which was my personal motivation for watching this), I even forgive the film for making his character sexier than it should be. Hurt’s quirky, protean sex appeal has been deplorably underused, so I enjoyed the opportunities he is given here. One can certainly understand why the filmmakers thought of him for the role, and why Hurt accepted the project, even though it did not have much to recommend it besides the story.

It is a pity that this movie is usually categorized as a horror film (and it was even bundled on DVD with films like BLOOD SABBATH and NECROMANCY), because it is certainly more interesting for people who enjoy psychological drama rather than horror. It is also a pity that the writers/directors Sergio Guerraz and Dominique Othenin-Girard have not done much since (except for contributing to further installments of the OMEN films, which may have influenced the categorization).