Spider (2002) director David Cronenberg
Spider is one of David Cronenberg's later films so don't expect body horror, instead it's a grim psychological drama. The film is set in a run down inner London deliberately washed out and bereft of people so it could be any decade from the war to the 1980s.
Ralph Fiennes stars as Dennis Cleg, a mentally disturbed man recently released from an institution into a gloomy half way house in the exact neighbourhood where he grew up. Wandering through familiar locations starts a series of well crafted flashbacks that allow Spider (his childhood nickname) to step into scenes from his childhood. This device is really disturbing as it allows the connection between the withdrawn child and the broken man to be clear..but are Spider's memories reliable?
Ralph Fiennes is very good in his role as Spider. His mental confusion is really believable. The way Cronenberg juxtaposes the scenes from the past with the ones from the present depicting Spider's delusions is very unsettling. Gabriel Byrne as his taciturn father doesn't have much to do but turns in his usual solid performance but Miranda Richardson is absolutely brilliant in the roles she has.
I saw Spider when it was first released and remember it left a big impression on me. I've not seen in since until last night, but I still find that it's a powerful depiction of mental confusion. It's not a happy film, you won't come away feeling an emotional bond to any of the characters. However the construction of the film is very clever, and when you start to think about people you see like Spider out on the streets then the story has a visceral sadness.
Spider is one of David Cronenberg's later films so don't expect body horror, instead it's a grim psychological drama. The film is set in a run down inner London deliberately washed out and bereft of people so it could be any decade from the war to the 1980s.
Ralph Fiennes stars as Dennis Cleg, a mentally disturbed man recently released from an institution into a gloomy half way house in the exact neighbourhood where he grew up. Wandering through familiar locations starts a series of well crafted flashbacks that allow Spider (his childhood nickname) to step into scenes from his childhood. This device is really disturbing as it allows the connection between the withdrawn child and the broken man to be clear..but are Spider's memories reliable?
Ralph Fiennes is very good in his role as Spider. His mental confusion is really believable. The way Cronenberg juxtaposes the scenes from the past with the ones from the present depicting Spider's delusions is very unsettling. Gabriel Byrne as his taciturn father doesn't have much to do but turns in his usual solid performance but Miranda Richardson is absolutely brilliant in the roles she has.
I saw Spider when it was first released and remember it left a big impression on me. I've not seen in since until last night, but I still find that it's a powerful depiction of mental confusion. It's not a happy film, you won't come away feeling an emotional bond to any of the characters. However the construction of the film is very clever, and when you start to think about people you see like Spider out on the streets then the story has a visceral sadness.