Hurlyburly Review
by Nicole Lesley (nikki AT theory DOT lcs DOT mit DOT edu)December 30th, 1998
HurlyBurly
Director: Anthony Drazan.
Starring: Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Chazz Palminteri, Garry Shandling, Anna Paquin, Meg Ryan.
What a contrast! In the space of two days, I saw Shakespeare In Love and HurlyBurly. I'm not sure you could get two more different movies. While the former was all over the top, telegraphing everything, shoving its philosophy of life down our throats, HurlyBurly was the complete opposite, wound so tight and with so much buried in its script, one could spend weeks thinking about it.
This is one interesting movie. It's very much in a similar vein to one of my favourite movies of '98, In the Company of Men, although not quite so nasty. There's lots of talking and some scary insights into the world of men.
HurlyBurly doens't contain much plot: we just follow Eddie (Sean Penn) around as he tries to make sense of his life and the people around him. His big question is: does it all pertain to him? And if it does, how is he supposed to feel about it all? "It" means everything: television, friends, events that happen. I guess it could be summed up more crudely as: what's it all about?
This is not a movie for answers. Donna (Anna Paquin) gives some but they're not really satisfying: they just lead to more questions. That's what makes this movie stay on your mind. These are the sorts of questions that occupy our time. Even when we push them to the background, however we resolve these questions influences everything we do.
The performances are all superb in HurlyBurly. I haven't seen Sean Penn in much before (in fact, I can't remember seeing him in anything), but he is brilliant in this. Eddie isn't a likeable character, but Sean Penn makes him understandable. I don't want to be his friend but I'd like to help him. Chazz Palminteri is also great as Phil, making him an awful person. I'd never want to know Phil but still I understand why Eddie wants to be his friend. Everyone in this film nails their performances, making this world real.
It's a nasty world; it's a sexist world. Unlike Shakespeare In Love which is unfailingly politically correct, HurlyBurly is a man's world, seen unapologetically through the eyes of men. I find this fascinating and on two counts, depressing. First, it's depressing that such a world exists. A large part of HurlyBurly's success is that it convinces me that such people are real and that this sort of environment exists every day in Hollywood; that there are a large number of men out there who believe women to be completely peripheral to their world, toys, playthings. Sure, everyone is background to everyone else but in this world, women are a long way in the background. Second, these are the movies that are being made: stories about men's world. Where are the stories about women's world? Not the soap operas and the "chick flicks" that are meant to satisfy women, but the real stories that touch on the essence of life like HurlyBurly does for men.
HurlyBurly is based on a stage play and that is evident from the moment the film starts. It's very talkative, intelligent and static. While this can make the film drag a bit, and people sometimes sound like they're quoting textbooks, mostly this is a good thing. Not all films have to be filled with special effects and sweeping panoramas. Not all films have to underestimate the intelligence of their audience. All it means is that HurlyBurly is probably just as effective on video as it is on the large screen. It also means that you have to pay attention.
Rating: D
© Nikki Lesley 1998
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http://www.cs.usyd.edu.au/~nikki/m_r/Intro.html
ratings system: HD: High Distinction
D: Distinction CR: Credit P: Pass CP: Conceded Pass F: Fail
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