HOMAGE
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1996 James Berardinelli
RATING (0 TO 10): 7.0 Alternative Scale: *** out of ****
United States, 1996 U.S. Release Date: beginning 6/96 (limited) Running Length: 1:37 MPAA Classification: R (Violence, sex, profanity) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Cast: Frank Whaley, Blythe Danner, Sheryl Lee, Danny Nucci,
Bruce Davison
Director: Ross Kagan Marks
Producers: Elan Sassoon and Mark Medoff
Screenplay: Mark Medoff
Cinematography: Tom Richmond
Music: W.G. Snuffy Walden
U.S. Distributor: Arrow Releasing
Perhaps 1996 will go down as the "year of the stalker". THE FAN, with Wesley Snipes and Robert De Niro, has yet to hit theater screens, but FEAR has come and gone, and THE CABLE GUY is still out there. All of these are thrillers (or, in the case of Jim Carrey's film, a comedy- thriller). Then there's Ross Kagan Marks' HOMAGE, which is anything but thrilling. An edgy, unsettling look at obsession and its potentially catastrophic results, HOMAGE is a straight drama/character study, and, though it features a number of questionable creative choices, a trio of powerful performances makes this film worthwhile.
The first dubious decision regarding HOMAGE was forcing it into a non-linear chronological structure. The film begins at the end, with TV star Lucy Samuel (Sheryl Lee, in the best performance of her career) being gunned down by psychotic fan Archie Landrum (Frank Whaley), while her mother, Katherine (Blythe Danner), looks on in horror. So much for any suspense about how things are going to be resolved. From that point, the narrative alternates between the present and the past, using flashbacks and a contrived pseudo-documentary style to chronicle events leading up to the shooting, while giving us glimpses of an imprisoned Archie in the aftermath, and detailing the tactics employed by his public defender (Bruce Davison) to beat the charges. Along the way, Marks also takes an occasional detour to shish-kabob celebrity worship and paparazzi.
All things considered, HOMAGE might have been more involving had it been told beginning-to-end. Cutting the superfluous scenes with Archie in jail would have been addition by subtraction -- they're easily the film's weakest link. Another flaw in fashioning HOMAGE lies in some of the tricks employed by the director and his cinematographer. A few "show off" shots are okay, but Marks and Tom Richmond go overboard, using bizarre angles too frequently and employing slow motion and "flash bulb" effects so often that they become distracting.
Even with all those negatives, however, HOMAGE still has a lot going for it. The story, of obsession growing into something more sinister, is played out in a fascinating, if somewhat contrived, fashion. As a character study, this is a fascinating piece, with Lucy, Katherine, and Archie forming the central triangle. Mother and daughter are trying desperately to bridge the gulf between them while Archie, the interloper, is attempting to curry Lucy's affections. For her part, she wants nothing to do with him.
Frank Whaley's chillingly effective portrayal of Archie goes a long way toward legitimizing this film. Archie has a Ph.D. in math, but, in his own words, is "an inept human being." Katherine sees him as lonely and harmless, not recognizing that his personality is dangerous. He's extremely intelligent, but lost, and the more Lucy rejects him, the more determined he becomes to win her -- at all costs. This is the obsession of someone with no sense of self-worth. The only way to validate his own existence is to become part of Lucy's life, and she thinks he's a creep. It's disturbing to watch the seemingly-normal Archie come completely unglued.
Meanwhile, Sheryl Lee returns to familiar territory with Lucy -- a character who is idolized in her home town while secretly battling addictions to drugs and booze. She keeps a private diary, and, in the end (or should I say, the beginning), is murdered. Lee's career started as Laura Palmer in David Lynch's TWIN PEAKS, and there are numerous similarities here. The marked difference is in the performance, however. When she appeared in PEAKS (and reprised the role in the big- screen's FIRE, WALK WITH ME), Lee was new at her craft. Here, she displays a depth and maturity that Lynch never captured.
The third member of the trio, Blythe Danner, is no less impressive than her co-stars, although her performance is more low-key. Nevertheless, it is only through Katherine's agonized reaction to her daughter's death that HOMAGE's most compelling tragedy becomes apparent.
HOMAGE is not a great film, but it is a vary watchable motion picture with a number of memorable sequences. There's something haunting and forceful about this movie, but I attribute that power more to what Whaley, Lee, and Danner do with the material than with the material itself.
- James Berardinelli e-mail: berardin@bc.cybernex.net ReelViews web site: http://www.cybernex.net/~berardin
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