Dark and twisted Fruedian horror film
Added 10/29/2009
The Bottom Line:
The mature Cronenberg who showed us two fine films in Eastern Promises and A History of Violence is very much in evidence here, abandoning his lifelong themes of the horror of the human body in favor of a more twisted study of mental illness; with a vulnerable and nuanced performance by Ralph Fiennes as our potentially unreliable narrator and very effective cinematography, Spider is a distinct and worthy horror film.
3.5/4
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Superb acting!
Added 9/12/2009
This is yet another example of Fiennes' finesse. He surpasses acting and becomes the troubled protagonist in this dark movie. Hard to watch at times but compelling, it exposes the underbelly of family dysfunction, and details how wounds to the psyche rarely heal and often fester. THis is not a movie to watch with the young or the squeamish. It is also not a film found amoung video store and library catalogs so this seller's price makes trying it worthwhile. Arrived quickly, new and well packaged.
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We Can All Go Home Now.
Added 12/23/2008
Spider. He remembers everything and nothing.
He likes to go into a picture that is hanging in this café he visits. In the picture, he and 2 of his friends say and do the most hilariously perverse things to one another. Then Spider takes nudey pics out of his pants and it's flippin' uproarious
Spider likes to put together jigsaw puzzles but instead of taking a break when he gets stuck, he freaks out and throws the puzzle all over the floor! Missus whatshername yells at him that he has to pick all the pieces back up and you know damn well he's not going to do what she says.
Spider gets completely hypnotized by the gasworks across the street from his house, he just stands there and he can't even move. His best friend has to come and literally drag him back into the house. I think he killed his mom that way but I wonder if he knows. He must because he can't move when he looks at the gasworks. Yet his mind is working just like that gasworks, automatic. I'm still so confused and I've scene this bloody movie 5 times.
He smokes like a total fiend, so much so that his hands are all yellow, he'll smoke at really inappropriate times, too, like when he's laying in bed. He writes and writes and I'm not convinced yet that he can speak coherently. It's all face and eyes. Mostly eyes.
His hair cut makes him look like a little kid when it's clean and when his mate breaks a huge mirror and tries to kill himself, Spider steals (he's an expert theif) and then turns in the piece of glass he's stolen. But he can hardly speak, so damaged.
And when he takes a bath, he lays on his side in the rust stained water, completely still, joyless, cold. Hard.
You just want to heal this man, at least I wanted to. Ralph Fiennes (Super Hot? And what does that mean this time around?) is spot on as this afflicted damaged schizophrenic suffering and dangerous man. I've seen everything Fiennes has ever done and for me, this is IT.
The Best. EVER.
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This was good
Added 11/27/2008
This was a movie with character study, and that is something that I like a lot. Ralph Fiennes was a very believable schizophrenic.
The plot of the movie was decently involved (but not overwhelming).
Especially good points:
1. The characters were developed in a certain way to lead us to think one thing, but it later became clear that they were viewed through the lens of schizophrenia.
2. One woman played several characters, and she did a great job with all three of them. That was a testament to training and study!
3. The movie came together at the end in an "Aha!" sort of way. It is not one of those types of movies that would hve to be watched two or three times to put everything in place-- but not so pedestrian as to be boring.
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One of my favorite movies ever
Added 9/16/2008
I am a massive Ralph Fiennes fan. Let's just get that out of the way right now. I have no doubt that this man could act out the phone book and make it interesting. With that said, this is my favorite RF movie, and subsequently, one of my favorite movies of all time.
It's difficult to describe the plot because, as others have said, it's complex and filled with twists that I really don't want to give away. So my only real option is to focus on the direction and acting, both of which are brilliant. This is a more restrained version of a Cronenberg movie, but no less interesting. He uses a massive amount of symbolism that makes you feel like you're inside a work of art, as opposed to just watching it.
The two best performances are from Miranda Richardson and Ralph Fiennes. Richardson plays three different characters (more of that symbolism) and by the end, manages to blend all three together into a sum where you can actually pick out what aspects belong to each character. It's a really incredible sight. Fiennes, on the other hand, goes in the opposite direction. He gets so into his character, it becomes totally and eerily believable. He barely says a single comprehensible word so the entire film relies on his body language. I think it's incredible that he carries the movie so well.
Some have said this film moves at a slow pace, but that wasn't the case for me. I was really interested in what was happening and what was going to happen, although I can understand that some might find it tough to sit through. This is a movie that will make you think, and I would definitely suggest it to anyone who's interested.
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