A movie which lives up to its name
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Carnage (15, 79 mins)
Comedy/Drama. Jodie Foster, John C Reilly, Christoph Waltz,
Kate Winslet. Director: Roman Polanski.
Director Roman Polanski strips away the veneer of civility that
supposedly separates man from beasts and reduces two well-to-do
couples to snarling adversaries in this film version of the
award-winning stage comedy God Of Carnage.
Playwright Yasmina Reza adapts her own celebrated work for the
big screen, entrusting her incendiary dialogue to a stellar cast
including three former Oscar winners, who deliver each verbal
grenade with lip-smacking relish.
It's an acting tour-de-force, the tension heightened by the
claustrophobic setting of a swish Brooklyn apartment overlooking
the park, where an act of aggression between two children provides
the dramatic spark for the hostility.
Polanski works closely with cinematographer Pawel Edelman to
move the argument around the enclosed space, shooting from
different angles to draw imaginary battle lines between the couples
as they vie for supremacy.
Yet the piece's origins are unmistakable and Reza's comical coup
de theatre - a character projectile vomiting across the stage when
a piece of homemade cobbler unsettles her stomach - doesn't have
quite the same impact when we're protected from spatter by the
cinematic fourth wall.
Alan Cowan (Christoph Waltz) and his wife Nancy (Kate Winslet)
visit the apartment of Michael and Penelope Longstreet (John C
Reilly, Jodie Foster) to apologise for their son Zachary, who has
hit the Longstreets' son Ethan in the face with a stick.
As a result, poor Ethan has two broken incisors, nerve damage
and swelling to his upper lip.
The meeting is intended to be brief and courteous and Alan tries
to speed along proceedings by candidly and brusquely admitting,
"Our son is a maniac. If you hope he'll suddenly and spontaneously
get all apologetic, you're dreaming."
As the conversation ebbs and flows, tensions become evident
until poor Nancy is taken ill and spoils Penelope's prized
Kokoschka art catalogue.
The Cowans head for the bathroom to clean up while the
Longstreets seethe.
"Their son is a threat to homeland security!" shrieks Penelope,
barely able to contain her middle-class fury.
Once the guests return to the sitting room, verbal exchanges
become increasingly terse and heated until all sense of decorum
disintegrates and the couples lash out just like their boys.
Carnage lives up to its title, decimating the characters'
facades of politeness and charm as collective tempers fray.
Waltz is thoroughly obnoxious as the corporate lawyer, who is
constantly rude to his hosts by taking urgent calls on his mobile
phone, while Winslet degenerates from simpering peacemaker into
cackling harpy.
Foster and Reilly are equally strong, turning on each other
about the sensitive issue of their nine-year-old daughter's pet
hamster.
Polanski allows the machine-gun dialogue to dictate the rhythm
of the film. The camerawork and editing becoming increasingly
frenetic as everyone competes for the delicious last word.
:: Swearing :: No sex :: Violence :: Rating: 7.5/10
To find local screenings for Carnage, click here
Wednesday, February 01 2012
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