Shame (2011)
I am always a fan of movies that push the envelope and aren't afraid to tackle some of the more taboo and uncomfortable sides of society. Sex is quite possibly one of the most uncomfortable and unexplored parts of the human experience which is kinda wild considering it also is one of the biggest. Not to sound too much like Sigmund Freud but so much of what we do is based around sex and sexual desires. They go so deep yet due to a religious backbone out society is based on it is a topic that many try to hide. Brandon Sullivan (Michael Fassbender) is a man struggling with a sex addiction. His whole life seems to revolve around sex as he often hooks up with prostitutes and masturbates constantly. Despite this constant desire for sex, Brandon feels alone and empty. He struggles to find intimacy and even when he does it just doesn't appeal to him.
Like I said I think the actual plot of this movie from a concept standpoint is pretty rich, there is plenty here that one could talk about and explore but this is where I think the film disappointed me the most. The character of Brandon Sullivan is really interesting, he is so absorbed in self-hatred and sorrow due to his uncontrollable deep and dark desires that he cannot control. Yet once they establish who this character is and what he is going through they do basically nothing with it, they never evolve the character or what it's trying to say but instead just says the same thing time and time and time again. With a character study like this, you need to push the character much more than this film does to create something truly captivating. Because of this movie's unwillingness to evolve he second half of this movie felt pretty boring if I am being honest. I kept waiting for something to happen to move the plot and this character along but instead sadly we stay at a pretty shallow level the entire time. I also felt like the character of his sister (Carey Mulligan) was so disappointing in how she was used. They start to hint that there is something deeper to her character specifically with her relationship with Brandon but they never go anywhere with it. It's not even that they have to directly say something, you can hint at something and give the audience something to chew on to uncover deeper messages and ideas but the film didn't even do that unless they all went over my head. It constantly feels like this film is building to something that it never reaches.
The major positive of the film though (which makes its disappointing plot more frustrating) is the acting in it. Michael Fassbender in particular absolutely kills it here despite having a very difficult and layered character he has to portray. This man is disgusted with his own desires that he is forced to obey and pleasure and he constantly has to walk the line between pleasured and disgusted which Fassbender does an amazing job at. This is a quiet and subtle performance that lacks really any loud big release which is not a negative at all. Fassbender is able to make the character captivating and impactful without this which speaks to the level of performance he is giving. Carey Mulligan as always is also a star here. The more I see of her the more I think she is one of the most underrated actresses of our generation, where sure her character is definitely lacking she gives it her all and does create a great performance for a mediocre character at least with how she is used in the plot.
Overall I went into Shame with a lot of hope, I really thought this would be an interesting film and another impressive feature in Steve McQueen's filmography but unfortunately, it left me cold. I think there is something great here, the characters are all good and have fantastic performances behind them. Sadly though the plot despite having natural interesting themes never lives up to what this movie could have been. It's not terrible but Shame overall was a disappointment for me as it decided to settle of being "good" over "amazing".
Overall I went into Shame with a lot of hope, I really thought this would be an interesting film and another impressive feature in Steve McQueen's filmography but unfortunately, it left me cold. I think there is something great here, the characters are all good and have fantastic performances behind them. Sadly though the plot despite having natural interesting themes never lives up to what this movie could have been. It's not terrible but Shame overall was a disappointment for me as it decided to settle of being "good" over "amazing".