Chances are unless you're a movie geek like myself, you've never heard of the name Neil LaBute. And if you have, it's probably because you saw the horrendous, laughable 2006 mainstream remake of the British 70's classic The Wicker Man that LaBute so-called "directed".
LaBute is a playwright who has been around for years, and had his film debut in 1997 with In The Company Of Men, a no-holds barred dark, dark comedy about two guys who set out to destroy the emotions of an innocent woman, who also just happens to be deaf. The film caught the attention of Sundance, and made LaBute the character-driven auteur of the late 1990's.
LaBute followed Company up with Your Friends & Neighbors, an even more mean-spirited dramedy containing Jason Patric's portrayal of one of the most evil and villainous characters in film history. Yes, I'd say this guy is on par with Hannibal Lecter from Silence Of The Lambs and John Doe from Se7en. And Patric's character isn't even a serial killer or a cannibal.
LaBute went on to more mainstream fair like 2000's Nurse Betty, the aforementioned crapfest The Wicker Man, 2008's Lakeview Terrace, and even returned to the perils of relationships in 2003's The Shape Of Things, based upon his own play.
Some Velvet Morning is LaBute's return to form. It's one of those talky pictures that involves only two characters, an attorney named Fred and his one-time mistress whom we only know as "Velvet" (flawlessly played by tour-de-force character actor Stanley Tucci and the sultry Alice Eve), plus the interior of a large townhouse, which in itself could be seen as a third character. It's definitely not a movie for everyone, and by the time it reaches the end, it will probably be a movie for only a certain few people.
So much cannot be said about the film without giving certain plot points away, so it's safe to say that this is most definitely an adult picture. Send the kiddos to bed and watch it in the dark with all the lights out.
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| "Psst, don't tell anybody I was part of Space Chimps!" |
The reason I say this is because it's very possible that Morning could be interpreted as the very first "romantic comedy-drama/horror movie". However, blood, guts, and gore remain non-existent, as the horror is implied and soon starts to build. It's very subtle at first, but as the film progresses, viewers begin to realize that all is not what it seems, and something is more than a little "off" about these characters.
That's really all I can say. Don't expect a happy ending here, it is a Neil LaBute picture after all. But realize that after it's over, and as you bask in and think about the emotional tugging and heart-wrenching coldness, notice what LaBute has asked you to accept, and could it be something that resonates a realism about society and what has happened to it?
Tracy and Hepburn this isn't.
Some Velvet Morning (2013)
Directed by Neil LaBute
83 minutes
Grade: A
