Shame

Anybody else heard about this? It's from Steve McQueen (the artist) who directed the admirable Hunger. That and this film stars Michael Fassbender and when I read the synopsis it immediately spoke to me as there are lots of things about it that I relate to already.

Anyways, it looks crisp from a cinematography view and could be one of the most interesting films to end the year. I was trying to get free tickets to see it but I think I may actually go to a Q and A session sometime in January, when it is officially released worldwide.

Sorry Fincher but I think we may have a top contender for the Fee Bad Film Of Christmas.

http://www.tribute.ca/movies/shame/28058/

Yeah, they reviewed this on The Late Review 3 or 4 weeks ago. As is per, Fassbender was roundly praised, as was the film and McQueen on the whole. Despite all this, from what they said, it sounded very much all style and little substance.

Well from the numerous reviews I have read it sounds like a film that has a healthy mix of style and substance. I've gotten the impression that the film is supposed to be very character driven and complex. I think that the Mulligan role is supposed to be a the weak link as it's reportedly underwritten but the film is meant to have a lot of spunk.

Here's hoping. The world can always use another good film. As I said, that was just my impression from what they said. They, for the most part, really liked it. However, it looks like one of those films you're 'supposed' to like and they're exactly the kind of people who do that.

I saw Shame a few weeks ago.

The acting by Fassbender and Carey Mulligan is fantastic and makes the movie worth a watch. However, I don't feel they broke any new ground or had any particular insight into that self-destructive type of person, nor were his sexual escapades interesting or even titillating. The material is very ordinary, really, but the performances are aces.

__________________
"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

This role finally gave Michael Fassbender the spotlight he deserves. I see him being the next big thing. No pun intended!

The second film by British filmmaker Steve McQueen, which is in many ways similar to the his first one (Hunger from 2008.). Again this is an excellent collaboration with Fassbender, again it is a film with strong dialogues, long takes and an atmosphere that fully conveys the emotional state of the characters.

Brandon is a New Yorker in the early 30's, he is financially stable, successful in his work and addicted to sex. He dosn't choose time, place or person to fulfill his needs and shame because of that devours him. He lives alone and he hides his problem in his solitude. While in company he leaves the opposite impression so when huge amount of pornography was found on his computer at work, his boss didn't even consider the possibility that that was really his.
Privacy, which he loves because of his problem, gets interrupted by his sisters sudden arrival with goal to stay with him, at least temporary, since after breakup with her boyfriend she has no other place to go. His relationship with her is presented to us even before her arrival in the form of Brendons persistent refusal to answer the phone because of which her arrival ended up as sudden for him. This relationship dosn't looking to move in positive direction even after her arrival. But on the other hand that invasion on Brendons privacy caused the need for change.

Shame is stylistically almost identical to Hunger. It's slow and monotonous as the backbone of the film are long shots of the characters faces with a goal to present the emotional state of characters and long shots of dialogues which are really ingenious. A big amount of viewers will probably find this movie extremely boring and those viewers who look for action and dynamics can freely ignore this film.
Michael Fassbender is great in this demanding role that fully carries the entire film, and Carey Mulligan, whose choice of roles is definitely showing hers increasing seriousness as an actress, deserves mention.
Although the topic is quite interesting and somewhat controversial, and the presentation of it is not bad, the overall feeling is far from special. The biggest objection is that the story produce very weak interest among viewers and after getting the point becomes boring. However Shame is an interesting piece of work with excellent acting and great dialogue scenes in just one take which is worth of seeing.

7/10

I'm also glad about Fassbender getting the main role. I went way off the deep end in a fromer review, trying to put a somewhat hopeful or optimistic spin on this film, but there isn't one, the films devistations took time to register. I'd agree it is a good film, even great, though not something I'd want to watch again, or atleast not again this decade.

Shame and The Turin Horse I consider the best films of 2011. While surfing the net you may encounter many reviews praising Fassbender and I have to say they all are right. Fassbender is giving the performance of his life in this movie. He's not even playing Brandon. He is Brandon. Such a dedication to the role is really rare. He completely exposed himself both physically and psychically and has shown the best performance in his entire career. Let's hope he makes more appearances in various movies. If he ever manages to get close to the greatness of Brandon character, he would be a legend.

I may sound like a fanboy, but I can't get over his genius. No other face expressions have ever touched me so much before (except Falconetti in Passion of Joan of Arc). You can literally feel the pain coming out of his face. I've never cried while watching people having sex before, but while watching Shame I did.

By the way, I can't understand the criticism of Mulligan's performance. Even though Fassbender's role overshadowed her, she still did pretty good. Let's hope she gets better and better with every film.

Besides acting, the technical side of the movie is just marvelous. The mastershots at the restaurant and later, the walk of Brandon and Marianne through the New York City are impressive. Not to mention the running shot with a classical music put along. Nice touch!

Soundtrack is another advantage of Shame. The main theme with continuous 'fapping', the end credits and nicely put classical music. The Mulligan's performance of the classic is awesome as well.

I don't want to write about the plot too much, because I am afraid I could spoil something. I'll just say it's very up-to-date and true. I can't think of any flaws. I've seen the movie twice, and the second time I saw it I liked it even more. I'm looking forward to seeing it again, even though last time I saw it like one week ago.

10/10.

Glad to see that people are making the effort to see this film. I didn't realise that Mulligan's performance had been criticised? :/ I wouldn't understand the beef with it.

I really liked it and when I went online to see how other audience felt about it, I saw many didn't get the point.

"it has some of the least sexy sex scenes in history - my libido was not enflamed at all, lol!" wrote one confused viewer.