IN THE BEDROOM (2001)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
"In the Bedroom" has all the hallmarks of a great film - nuanced performances, assured direction and a terrific script of sublime restraint. But like some potentially great films, something happens that prevents them from fulfilling their promise - an extraneous, flawed ending.
Set in the summer season of Camden, Maine, the movie opens with a shot of two lovers roaming in the fields, caressing and kissing each other. Not a word is said between them - love or lust is in the air. Frank Fowler (Nick Stahl), a graduate student, is the boyfriend of the more mature Natalie Strout (Marisa Tomei), a mother and a wife to a lout of a husband. Natalie is about to get divorced and Frank is convinced this woman is the one for him. Of course, Natalie has her problems. She has two kids and an abusive husband, Richard (William Mapother), who insists on moving back into their house to be near the kids. Richard wants Natalie back and is prepared to do anything to get her back.
Meanwhile Frank's parents, Ruth (Sissy Spacek) and Matt (Tom Wilkinson), feel that Frank should be tending to his studies, not to a woman he may not have a future with. Ruth is the more concerned, unforgiving parent who senses trouble around the corner of Frank's future. Matt simply wants his son to be happy and does not boss him around. A fight ensues between Frank and Richard but Frank's father agrees to keep the whole situation quiet.
"In the Bedroom" is the latest in the serene, melancholic noir stories where incidents in a small town determines a character's morality and puts them to the test. It is a methodical, keenly observant drama, told in the same lyrical style as "The Deep End." Therefore, like all films dependent on surprises, it would not be fair to reveal what happens in "In the Bedroom." The surprises and twists in the narrative say as much about the characters as a Hollywoodized plot would. But the last quarter of the film makes such a dramatic turn that I was a little angry and dismayed. Let's just say that Matt's character, a good man and a good father, commits an act of malevolence so unsuspecting and unbelievable that I could not see it as anything beyond a cop-out. Though the closing shots are nicely conveyed, the dramatic U-turn in plotting the development of Matt's character leaves something to be desired.
It is a shame really because three-quarters of "In the Bedroom" is riveting and compelling. Director and co-writer Todd Field (an actor making his feature debut) weaves an amazing cast of actors into phenomenal characterizations within the backdrop of a small town where nothing much happens. Ruth and Matt are two characters I will not soon forget. Ruth is a choral director by day who seems to lack much communication with her silent husband. Matt is a doctor by day who plays cards with his buddies and is mostly intent on living his life day-by-day. He might also be taking his wife for granted and Ruth senses this and acknowledges as such. Spacek and Wilkinson are a match made in heaven and wonderful to watch in each and every scene.
"In the Bedroom" is a film of silences and gestures - a look or a stare says more than an actual line of dialogue. Consider one terrifically timed scene where Matt sits at his buddy's restaurant by the window and he notices a truck that arrives and stops exactly where he sits. The logo on the truck is "Strout." Or consider moments where Ruth watches her husband mow the lawn after a tragic incident has taken place in their lives. Todd Field has a future as a director if he wishes to pursue it - he knows silence is golden in accentuating characters' emotions. It's just that his endings need improvement.
