To Die For

GREEN'S STRAIGHT FROM THE PAMELA SMART SCHOOL OF MANIPULATIVE BITCHINESS REVIEW:

A work friend of mine suggested this movie one day when we were talking about - what else - movies. Of course, I had never seen it before a few days ago when I watched it for this review. But I really didn’t need to. See, I knew the basic story already because this film is based on the real life story of Pamela Smart (pictured at her 1991 trial, below left) and it happened right across the border in Derry, New Hampshire, during the time when I was in college. I got the real life version in the news for several weeks (months, with the trial and all?) Believe me, the coverage around these parts was huge.

Of course, for this movie they’ve changed some of the details and the names of the characters involved. In real life Pam Smart was a teacher, in the film Suzanne Stone is an aspiring television personality. Even the city and county in New Hampshire are fictitious.

Nicole Kidman is excellent as the narcissistic, manipulative Suzanne Stone. She won a Best Actress Golden Globe for her performance but strangely was not even nominated for an Academy Award in 1995. Matt Dillon is good as her blindly loving husband, Larry Maretto. Illeana Douglas gives a very emotional performance as Larry‘s sister Janice. The movie also features a young Joaquin Phoenix and Casey Affleck. Director Gus Van Sant for the most part does a good job keeping the story moving, though I thought that the beginning of the movie dragged in a few spots.

I liked the documentary “after the fact” format Van Sant utilizes to tell the story. It makes the movie more interesting instead of using the traditional third party point of view or the first person point of view.

This is an entertaining film that I think you’ll enjoy.

***½ out of *****

SCRIBE'S WHY WERE NINETIES TEENS SO SCREWED UP? REVIEW:

This is one of my favorite movies. I knew it was based on actual events but had no idea Green was involved...wait, I just reread his review...scratch that last part. Sorry, Green.

This was Nicole Kidman's bid for legitimacy in the acting world and she nailed it. As the bitchy, covetous, manipulative and yes, very sexy media member wanna-be Suzannae Stone, she brings a stunning amount of depth to an otherwise vaporous character.

The documentary/talk show format Van Sant uses is a brilliant choice and now typical of the Nineties outlook on intrusive media (see Natural Born Killers & The Chase for examples). Were the film made now there would no doubt be some web cast references and nobody would be all that phased because everybody is Suzanne Stone now.

What was once shocking is now normal. Stone's belief that we're nobody if we're not on TV because nobody's watching is so ingrained in people today that the film seems at times more like a period piece than a timeless cautionary tale.

The acting is great. Matt Dillon plays good-natured dumb-asses better than practically anyone and a young Joaquin Phoenix brings a psychotic innocence to the teen boy who eventually does Stone's bidding that is compelling the way of a car accident. Casey Affleck is also very good although not given as much to do.

I want to read the novel now. This is a great film and deserved the Oscar much more than Fargo, which pains me to write as I am a huge Cohen Brothers fan~

***** out of *****