The Safety of Objects
Y
March 7, 2003
This review was written for the theatrical release of "The Safety of Objects."
Writer-director Rose Troche's third indie film ambitiously reworks several short stories by A.M. Homes into a multifaceted portrait of modern suburbia. Alas, despite an enticing cast that includes Glenn Close, Patricia Clarkson and Dermot Mulroney, "The Safety of Objects" never quite reaches the heights it shoots for. First unveiled at the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival, the limited IFC Films release has won over some critics, but it's destined to come and go in theaters with little fanfare.
In her desire to mold Homes' empathetic stories of troubled suburbanites and keep it as realistic as possible, Troche has some success initially, but there are four separate families and nearly two dozen characters to keep track of. With a long running time that no amount of nonlinear construction can successfully quicken, "Safety" does have sequences and whole story lines that are fresh and thoughtfully entertaining.
The movie also has an "American Beauty"-like mission to tear aside the veil of respectability and emotional stability that are cliches of clean white neighborhoods, but in this day and age there's nothing remotely shocking or particularly revelatory. Two characters and their crises of identity emerge as the headliners in "Safety": Esther (Close), who has a grown son in a coma, and lawyer Jim Train (Mulroney).
The conceit of the movie is that Esther and Jim have nothing to do with each other at first but end up fatefully connected. Passed over for a promotion and convinced that his wife (Moira Kelly) is cheating on him, Jim starts to unravel and eventually becomes obsessed with helping Esther win a car in a mall-sponsored giveaway. Esther is trying to win the car for her demanding daughter (Jessica Campbell), and the endurance contest becomes a sad spectacle of consumerism.
Meanwhile, single mom Annette Jennings (Clarkson) is toughing out a bitter divorce and thinks her daughter (Kristen Stewart) is snatched by the father. In fact, the girl is lured into a strange encounter with the neighborhood handyman (Timothy Olyphant), who is having a hard time getting past a deadly driving accident for which he was partially to blame.
Rounding out the principal players are Mary Kay Place as yet another stagnant-souled mother raising kids and trying to evolve, Robert Klein as Esther's detached husband and young Alex House as Jim's son, who has a fantasy relationship with the doll of his sister in a cute but overdone shtick involving dialogue and role playing.
Roche's direction is quietly proficient, and the production values are top-notch for a low-budget project.
Overall, one has plenty of time to ponder the often exaggerated roles in life played by things and absorb the message that we all need to have more faith in one another.
THE SAFETY OF OBJECTS
IFC Films
Clear Blue Sky Prods., Renaissance Films An InFilm/Killer Films production
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Rose Troche
Based on the book of stories by: A.M. Homes
Producers: Dorothy Berwin, Christine Vachon
Executive producers: Stephen Evans, Angus Finney, Jody Patton, Pamela Koffler
Director of photography: Enrique Chediak
Production designer: Andrea Stanley
Editor: Geraldine Peroni
Costume designer: Laura Jean Shannon
Casting: Bonnie Finnegan, Steven Jacobs
Cast:
Esther: Glenn Close
Jim Train: Dermot Mulroney
Annette Jennings: Patricia Clarkson
Randy: Timothy Olyphant
Susan Train: Moira Kelly
Helen Christianson: Mary Kay Place
Julie: Jessica Campbell
Running time -- 120 minutes
MPAA rating: R
Writer-director Rose Troche's third indie film ambitiously reworks several short stories by A.M. Homes into a multifaceted portrait of modern suburbia. Alas, despite an enticing cast that includes Glenn Close, Patricia Clarkson and Dermot Mulroney, "The Safety of Objects" never quite reaches the heights it shoots for. First unveiled at the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival, the limited IFC Films release has won over some critics, but it's destined to come and go in theaters with little fanfare.
In her desire to mold Homes' empathetic stories of troubled suburbanites and keep it as realistic as possible, Troche has some success initially, but there are four separate families and nearly two dozen characters to keep track of. With a long running time that no amount of nonlinear construction can successfully quicken, "Safety" does have sequences and whole story lines that are fresh and thoughtfully entertaining.
The movie also has an "American Beauty"-like mission to tear aside the veil of respectability and emotional stability that are cliches of clean white neighborhoods, but in this day and age there's nothing remotely shocking or particularly revelatory. Two characters and their crises of identity emerge as the headliners in "Safety": Esther (Close), who has a grown son in a coma, and lawyer Jim Train (Mulroney).
The conceit of the movie is that Esther and Jim have nothing to do with each other at first but end up fatefully connected. Passed over for a promotion and convinced that his wife (Moira Kelly) is cheating on him, Jim starts to unravel and eventually becomes obsessed with helping Esther win a car in a mall-sponsored giveaway. Esther is trying to win the car for her demanding daughter (Jessica Campbell), and the endurance contest becomes a sad spectacle of consumerism.
Meanwhile, single mom Annette Jennings (Clarkson) is toughing out a bitter divorce and thinks her daughter (Kristen Stewart) is snatched by the father. In fact, the girl is lured into a strange encounter with the neighborhood handyman (Timothy Olyphant), who is having a hard time getting past a deadly driving accident for which he was partially to blame.
Rounding out the principal players are Mary Kay Place as yet another stagnant-souled mother raising kids and trying to evolve, Robert Klein as Esther's detached husband and young Alex House as Jim's son, who has a fantasy relationship with the doll of his sister in a cute but overdone shtick involving dialogue and role playing.
Roche's direction is quietly proficient, and the production values are top-notch for a low-budget project.
Overall, one has plenty of time to ponder the often exaggerated roles in life played by things and absorb the message that we all need to have more faith in one another.
THE SAFETY OF OBJECTS
IFC Films
Clear Blue Sky Prods., Renaissance Films An InFilm/Killer Films production
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Rose Troche
Based on the book of stories by: A.M. Homes
Producers: Dorothy Berwin, Christine Vachon
Executive producers: Stephen Evans, Angus Finney, Jody Patton, Pamela Koffler
Director of photography: Enrique Chediak
Production designer: Andrea Stanley
Editor: Geraldine Peroni
Costume designer: Laura Jean Shannon
Casting: Bonnie Finnegan, Steven Jacobs
Cast:
Esther: Glenn Close
Jim Train: Dermot Mulroney
Annette Jennings: Patricia Clarkson
Randy: Timothy Olyphant
Susan Train: Moira Kelly
Helen Christianson: Mary Kay Place
Julie: Jessica Campbell
Running time -- 120 minutes
MPAA rating: R
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