HOLLOW REED
A film review by Jun Yan
Copyright 1997 Jun Yan
The small English film "Hollow Reed" is a little like a made-for-TV production on Sunday night. It's inspired by a real incidence and it centers around a divorced couple and their small son. It also contains an inflammatory homosexual relationship. Howeverr, the sincerity and seriousness of the filmmakers to the issue of child abuse seperate this film from others that exploit and sensationalize such tragedy.
Martyn is a middle-class physician who was divorced because he could not deny any more the fact that he was gay. Presently, he is living with a cute (even to a girl) lover and has a stable, happy relationship. His ex-wife Hannah, who is still bitter about the unfortunate marriage, has an equally pleasant relationship with an architect Frank. Martyn and Hannah's small son Oliver. Naturally, Hannah has the custody and Martyn has only a restricted visiting right -- who says it's easy to be a homosexual and a dad the same time?
The film starts with Oliver's frentic escape to his father's apartment with a terrible cut on his face. He was frightened, but lied about the cause and the person responsible for such a brutal crime. It was not hard for any viewer to figure out who did it, and it was a little odd that Martyn the father did not until the second incidence in which Oliver ended up with hand fractures. At least the filmmakers made no secret that Frank, Hannah's boyfriend, is a violent child abuser.
Things got sticky when Martyn went to court seeking the custody and safety for his son. He was obviously on not-so-firm ground being homosexual and living with a man. Tension escalated to a final showdown between the father and the abuser. I have to say that it's not a completely satisfying ending to deserve the heart-wrenching development of the whole film.
Even though childless as I am, I did not hold back a couple of drops of tears when I watched the unspeakable scenes of child abuse. It was, however, more of rage than of sadness, and it made the character Hannah a not very believable person -- at least to me. Even after her seeing the abuse with her own eyes, she continues to allow her boyfriend living in the house and getting the chance to beat up her young, defenseless child. The film goes through great trouble to argue that she is not a bad person and she loves Oliver very much, yet I just don't buy that. Of course, it's true that a parent's pleasure and happiness may not be consistent with their child's, but I still cannot imagine anyone who loves their children would let such horrible abuse go on. The writers want us to sympathize with Hannah along with feeling for Oliver -- well, they cannot have it both ways, no matter how hard they try to explain her bitterness and hurt from her failed marriage.
Martyn, the father, was more sensibly written and easier for the audience to identify with. His anguish and frustration are understandable and his situation beyond his own control. The helplessness of not able to protect his own son is nicely delivered by Martin Donovan. Still, I cannot help comparing this film to Sling Blade, which involves a similar theme of child abuse. The characters in this screenplay pale due to their simplicity and lack of depth. They are farely straight forward, especially the villain Frank, who is stereotypical and very predictable. The situation is also fairly see-through for the audience to take sides. One side is a loving and decent father and his extremely understanding and caring companion in a warm, stable relationship; the other is a selfish mother (yes, selfish, a more old-fashioned word than denial) who weighs her own pleasure over her child's safety and a terrible scumbag child-beater. There is no challenge, no dilemma, no ambiguity in the situation. The same problem lies in the climax of the film that is too convenient and too easy.
Some detailed in the film are very neatly done and the child actor is very good and heart-breaking. I give "Hollow Reed" a B.
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