When this movie ended, I started walking out like I normally do. While walking up the ramp toward the exit, I noticed a guy who was still seated, watching the credits roll. He looked familiar to me, and after a moment, I knew who he was. "Sean Gullette?" I asked him, hoping it WAS him, because if it wasn't, I just made an idiot of myself. He looked at me dubiously and said slowly, "yeah, who are you?" Yep, it was Sean Gullette, watching a movie in the Regal South Beach Cinema on Lincoln Road. I doubt that many of you know who he is. He's an actor I've seen in independent films. It's not like seeing Bruce Willis, but to me, this was just as cool. I told him that I was a big fan of his work (he starred in "Pi," and he played memorable roles in "Requiem for a Dream" and "Happy Accidents"). He was very polite, asked me my name and shook my hand. I asked him if he had anything lined up and he said that he did. Then that was it. I said that it was nice meeting him and I walked away. Walking around Lincoln Road afterwards, I was telling myself that I shoulda told him about my web site, I shoulda told him about my script, and I shoulda asked him everything I wanted to ask him (like if his friend, director Darren Aronofsky, is working on the movie version of "Batman: Year One" yet). Then again, that would be pretty annoying, right?
I know that I'm supposed to write a review here, but I thought it was cool to meet Sean Gullette. Not as cool as it would be to meet Natalie Portman or Rachael Leigh Cook, but that's okay.
Alright, so yeah, "In the Bedroom" is pretty damn depressing. It's a movie that starts off with things going along nicely, the characters are happy, all getting along, but then something happens, and the rest of the movie is this dark, harrowing ride through misery. This isn't a movie to see if you want a pick-me-up. Nor is it a movie to see if you're in the mood for action. This is a very slow movie, but the story is absorbing, and the acting is outstanding.
Another thing I like about this movie is the realism. The dialogue is so real, and so are the people and the events that occur. Well, up to the end anyway, but I'll get into that later. The dialogue isn't tremendously witty, but it's the way people talk. The characters talk the way people really talk, they deal with tragedy the way people really deal with tragedy, and they react to a gun being pointed at them the way people really react to a gun being pointed at them. There's this one part where a married couple is having it out, they're having a vicious fight. I won't get into details, but the fight is interrupted. The way it's interrupted, and how the interruption is dealt with may seem absurd, it sure got a few chuckles from the audience, including me. But it's real. That stuff really happens, and I appreciate that it was in the movie.
Of course, realism doesn't always mean exciting. Like I said, the movie is very slow. Too slow at times, but I was never really bored. As for how the movie ends... I dunno. The way it ended seemed to sacrifice realism for a shocking ending. Well, it's not all THAT shocking, but I think it tried to be. One thing's for sure, whether you like the ending or not, it'll make you think.
I have a feeling that there will be several Oscar nominations for this movie. Definitely a Best Actress nomination for Sissy Spacek (great actress recently seen in the oddly G-rated David Lynch Disney movie, "The Straight Story"... also, she played the title character in "Carrie"). Wow, her performance is astonishing. I can also see a Best Actor nomination for Tom Wilkinson (an English actor playing an American here... he was "General Charles Cornwallis" in "The Patriot" and "Hugh Fennyman" in "Shakespeare in Love") who plays her husband. Finally, I can easily see another Best Supporting Actress nomination for Marisa Tomei (she won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role opposite Joe Pesci in "My Cousin Vinny"... she was recently in "What Women Want" and "Happy Accidents"), who plays their son's love interest. These three are excellent. As for the son himself, he's very good, too. He's played by Nick Stahl (recently starred in the title role in Larry Clark's controversial film, "Bully"). The one who plays Marisa Tomei's ex-husband is played by William Mapother, who happens to be Tom Cruise's cousin, and has had small roles in some Tom Cruise movies. I seriously doubt he got the part in this movie just because of who's in his family, though. He does a great job, he CAN act. I DO think that his being related to Tom Cruise may have something to do with it, though.
"In the Bedroom" was directed by Todd Field, a talented actor/writer/director/composer/musician, and he has a very eclectic list of credits. He did some of the music for a movie he starred in with Ashley Judd called "Ruby in Paradise," and he also did some of the music for a movie he was in called "Gross Anatomy." He's directed some short films, one of which was called "When I Was a Boy," which he wrote and directed with his "Gross Anatomy" co-star, Matthew Modine. He's also been seen sporadically acting in a few other movies, most memorably as Tom Cruise's best friend, "Nick Nightingale," in "Eyes Wide Shut." Hey, he acted with Tom Cruise! Think that's when he met Tom Cruise's cousin? No big deal, though. Like I said, he was very good. As for the script, it was written by Todd Field and Robert Festinger (his debut). It was based on a short story by Andre Dubus, though I don't remember the title. It's either "Killing," "The Killing," or "Killings"... something like that. Actually, this isn't the first time that Todd Field directed a film based on a short story by Andre Dubus. Years ago, Todd Field directed a short film called "Delivering," which was based on one of Dubus' short stories.
I like "In the Bedroom," but it's deep, dark, depressing stuff. The problem is that it moves very, very slowly, so some people may lose interest. In fact, I heard a guy grumbling about that very thing to his girlfriend throughout the movie (asshole). It's not a movie for everyone, and it really IS depressing, but it's definitely well-made, and it's certainly well-acted.
Scale of 1-10: 8