In all honesty, I wasn't surprised that this film was on the list for the course. It's one of the biggest artsy films out at the moment, and it is laced with symbolism, metaphor and those long lingering camera shots from a shaky cam that people have to come to love so much. The plot of the film is not that important. It's more a character study of Michael Fassbender's character Brandon, and his sexual ... urges. Yeah, this film is rated R for a reason. Within the first ten minutes you are greeted with a naked Michael Fassbender. And I mean naked.
But as I say, this is a detailed character study of a man who seems disgusted by what he does yet can't help but do it anyway. He shares a love/hate relationship with his sister, Sissy (Carey Mulligan), and it is when Sissy reappears in his life that the plot takes over. Their relationship is the centre of the film, and it is left ambiguous as to what their past relatioship was like. We don't get much back story whatsoever, it is all left behind doors that are only left half open. The siblings' relatioship is also quite ambiguous as to whether there is anything sexual between them.
The film portrays Brandon like a man with a disease that he is trying to overcome through the course of the film. We don't see him 'enjoying' having sex or masturbating (except from the obvious 'sexual enjoyment' we all get ;) ), to him it just seems like a chore almost. The films whole view of sex left a little confused at times. It was condemning Brandon for having casual sex instead of having long term relationships, and yet doesn't question Sissy's life. This might be because the film is from Brandon's perspective and that, while Sissy has serious issues, she is more accepting of her lifestyle. The whole film goes back to the character of Brandon, and how he can't accept who he is.
When he does try to have a more meaningful relationship, he is unable to go through with it, which seems to say that he is unable of understanding and committing to love. Indeed, his relationship with his sister seems to support this fact. While he loves her, he can't stand to be around her because she reminds him of himself, and his own 'shame'. And yet while he harbours this great shame at what he does, hiding it away from his public life and acting almost prudish (one example is when he changes his sheets after his sister has sex in his bed), she is mostly fine with the life she lives, what Sissy really wants is the love from her brother that he refuses to give her. Sissy is a tragic character, and when she does try to reach out to her brother, he finds himself repulsed by her and to a greater extent himself.
This film also deals with double identity, and how appearances can be deceptive. Brandon's boss and work colleagues have little to no idea about the sorts of things he gets up to in his spare time, and are almost shocked to think of him being a sex addict. There are moments throughout the film when we see that he is a pretty decent guy. He harbours this great problem inside himself, like someone with a drug or alcohol addiction, and it is with the arrival of his sister that this resentment for what he does finally opens up in a frenetic climax.
The acting is exceptional, with both leads working off each other and giving incredibly moving performances. This is a film that uses looks more than dialogue. In one of the best scenes in the movie, Carey Mulligan 'sings' a sparse and discordant version of 'New York New York', with Michael Fassbender looking on. The scene is just made up of close ups of their faces, but the emotions they betray makes it the most moving scene in the film. In fact, if Carey Mulligan is mouthing it, then it makes it an even more incredible performance. To be able to perform so perfectly such a moving piece without actually performing it is an amazing feat. Michael Fassbender also gives a masterful performance, and by the end, he seems to have visibly aged fromt the events in the film.
Tech wise, the lighting and music is perfect, highlighting the emotions of the scene and creating a hostile atmosphere for the characters to interact in, and the music especially fits seemlessly into the scene. Most of the sets are white, or with bland colouring, giving a stark hospital-like quality. The shaky cam is used here, but it is used in a more natural way (as opposed to the rushed usuage in J. Edggar) and it enhances the understated performances.
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