CLAIRE OF THE MOON
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1993 James Berardinelli
Rating: 5.0 out of 10 (D+, *1/2 out of ****)
Date Released: varies (limited distribution) Running Length: 1:47 Rated: NR (Nudity, sex, language, mature themes)
Starring: Trisha Todd, Karen Trumbo Director: Nicole Conn Producer: Pamela S. Curi Screenplay: Nicole Conn Music: Michael Allen Harrison Released by Demi-Monde Productions
Claire Jabrowski (Trisha Todd) is a California author who has reached recognition based on titles like LIFE CAN RUIN YOUR HAIR. To write her next book, she has decided to spend some time at an all-female Pacific Coast writers' retreat. She arrives there to meet her roommate, Dr. Noel Benedict (Karen Trumbo), the author of the infamous THE NAKED TRUTH and an avowed lesbian. Noel and Claire are as different from each other as two women can be, and that's the cause of inevitable friction. Where Noel is neat, orderly, non-smoking, and averse to casual relationships, Claire is the exact opposite. Yet as the story progresses, the two find themselves inexplicably drawn to each other.
In the past few years, a number of films portraying the gay community and culture in a positive light have come out (the most controversial of which has to be Gregg Araki's THE LIVING END). Most of these, however, have explored male relationships. CLAIRE OF THE MOON is one of the few movies to cross over and present the issues from the female perspective.
The film has its interesting points, but almost all are realized on an intellectual and not an emotional level. There's a great deal of academic discussion on the differences between heterosexual and homosexual relationships, the nature of intimacy, and why there is so much difficulty communicating in modern society. While the viewer may not always agree with the conclusions of the characters, it's impossible to deny that the reasoning is well thought-out and the topics are certainly worth investigation.
There's another interesting feature about CLAIRE OF THE MOON that may make some male viewers squirm a little. Men are not treated particularly well in this film, and writer/director Nicole Conn makes no apologies for this. They are portrayed as little more than sex objects--bodies to satiate Claire's hunger. Turnabout, after all, is fair play. How many times have women fit this role in male-oriented movies?
CLAIRE OF THE MOON ultimately fails because it does a poor job of entertaining. While the film undoubtedly attempts to pique the intellect, it is, above all else, a love story and, as such, should rouse the emotions as well. For a number of reasons, it proves entirely unable to do so.
First and foremost is the amateurish quality of the screenplay. The basic story is old, formula-riddled, and predictable (the only difference being that the lovers are two women rather than a man and a women). On top of that, the dialogue is unbelievably stilted. People talk like they're reading from an intellectual treatise. I know a lot of people with excellent vocabularies and they don't talk anything like the characters in CLAIRE OF THE MOON.
The acting isn't going to win any awards either. At their best moments, the principles are merely adequate. Their characters lack depth, more often acting as mouthpieces for a philosophy than as the unique people they're supposed to be. Worse still are the five or six supporting performers who consistently go annoyingly over-the-top. One character in particular (Caren Graham's Tara O'Hara) is so awful--a walking cliche with a terrible Southern accent--that the film is painful to watch when she's on-screen.
Finally, the Nicole Conn's direction isn't much better than her writing. She has a lot of mellow scenery shots with Claire in reflective poses that look like they belong on the cover of romance novels. Accompanied by a "dreamy" score, these moments are almost comically absurd. Then there are the two fantasy sequences, which look and sound like poorly-conceived music videos.
There can't be many copies of this film, because the one that I saw (on the second day of release) was not in good condition, an indication that the print has been shipped from city-to-city. Other copies across the country (however many there are) aren't likely to be in better condition. This is a minor quibble, but it is noticeable, especially at the beginning.
While it's possible to applaud the motives of CLAIRE OF THE MOON, as well as its message, the project is simply not a strong enough movie to recommend. This is a good example of a small, independent film that boasts neither high production values nor good acting. It is a single-issue picture that's too flawed to be given the serious attention the subject warrants.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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