Revolutionary Road
October 23rd 2009 07:01
Sometimes I wonder why we go and see horror movies. People often say that art is an escapist medium. Although the people who say this may not necessarily be artists themselves or even people who can lose themselves in appreciation of art, there is some truth to it. So what is it we are escaping from when we see horror movies? Maybe we are trying to see if there is something even more frightening than real life. Than reality itself. For what can be more frightening and horror inducing than the monotonous humdrum of daily life. Of routine. Of familiarity.
Yesterday I saw the movie 'Revolutionary Road'. And it scared me at more levels than I care to admit. For there was nothing make-believe in it at all. It was all very real. More than real. I could make deep connections with the theme of the movie and my personal life. And as many of you know, it is those kinds of art that appeal to you most - the ones that make a personal connection.
It is hard to judge as to who did better. Director Sam Mendes or the ever-vibrant Lenoardo DiCaprio or the almost ageless beauty Kate Winslet. Probably the highest praise I can offer to the movie is that I saw it as a vignette, a slice of real life. And the possibilities it broached were very real. So real that I fear that may come to pass.
The movie concerns itself with a young couple (with 2 young kids) who think that they are wonderful people, a bit better than the average individuals they see around them. But in reality they have the same job, the same privileges, the same small but neat home and the same week long struggle in a job that does not appeal to them. This is more true for the man in the movie - Leonardo. Kate Winslet strikes upon an idea to change things. To move to Europe - to Paris - where she would get a secretarial job and Lenoardo would get time to think about where really his passion lay and what he wanted to do with himself and his time. What happens after both of them agree to this plan is the movie.
On the face of it, there is nothing special about the theme. But so is real life. There is nothing special about it. I think this is where the director has outdone himself. In taking a commonplace subject and making it even more commonplace. So much so that viewers identify themselves in the movie stars, see them enacting scenes that they have experienced at home. In a word, it was a visceral experience. If I were to sum up the movie in a sentence - it portrays the epic struggle between romance and practicality at the micro level, with respect to a single couple, deeply in love with each other and their own ideals or what they believe as an ideal.
A must watch movie even if you are not a fan of slow moving romance movies. This will make my all time Top 10 movies. Dont ask me what the other movies are. I am still finding out.
| 61 |
| Vote |
subscribe to this blog
Comment by Anonymous
Luv
Raji
Comment by Balachandhran S
Tricolour Prism
Hello Raji,
Thanks for stopping by. I believe this movie is based on the novel of the same name by Richard Yates. Typically I have never found myself recommending a movie over its source book. But in this case, I find myself thinking that if the movie is this good, then the novel has to be a few cuts above!
I would pick this movie in my top 10 all time favourites. Whether you like it or not, you may share it right here after you watch it.