EYE OF GOD
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1997 James Berardinelli
RATING (0 TO 10): 7.0 Alternative Scale: *** out of ****
United States, 1997 Running Length: 1:24 MPAA Classification: No MPAA Rating (Violence, mature themes, profanity, sex) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Shown at the Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema, 5/8/97 & 5/10/97
Cast: Martha Plimpton, Kevin Anderson, Hal Holbrook, Nick Stahl, Richard Jenkins, Margo Martindale, Mary Kay Place Director: Tim Blake Nelson Producers: Wendy Ettinger, Michael Nelson Screenplay: Tim Blake Nelson Cinematography: Russell Lee Fine Music: David Van Tiegham
EYE OF GOD is the evocative title given by writer/director Tim Blake Nelson to the film adaptation of his stage play. A strange, dark movie that ruminates upon several weighty questions about faith and the existence of a Supreme Being, EYE OF GOD uses two stories spread over four timelines to present its case. The resulting examination of characters and issues is expressed as a noir thriller.
The film opens in the town of Kingfisher, Oklahoma, where a blood- drenched, 15 year old boy, Tommy Spencer (Nick Stahl), is discovered wandering around late at night. The blood isn't Tommy's, but it's clear that he has either witnessed or committed a terrible crime. His stony silence defeats all attempts by the chief of police (Hal Holbrook) to uncover the truth about what happened. Gradually, however, those of us in the audience learn the story as the film flashes back on the courtship and marriage of Ainsley Dupree (Martha Plimpton) and her ex- con husband, Jack Stillings (Kevin Anderson).
The strength of EYE OF GOD is Ainsley. Not only is she superbly acted by Martha Plimpton (playing against type as the shy, reserved, small town girl), but Nelson's script does an excellent job of getting into her head and uncovering her hopes, dreams, and motives. As a result, Ainsley becomes the kind of real person that an audience can understand and sympathize with. Even though her seemingly-happy marriage is doomed from the start (Isn't this true of all happy marriages in noir films?), we're glad to see the brief moments of joy she manages to steal from an otherwise bleak life.
Kevin Anderson is also effective, although his role is somewhat less original and ambitious. The fundamentalist "villain" has become too much of a cliche over the years -- an easy target for film makers to take aim at. It's at the point now where if there's a fervently religious character in a movie, he or she will inevitably turn out to be a psycho. In Jack's case, at least a partially-successful attempt is made to turn him into a believable, multi-faceted individual.
The themes that form EYE OF GOD's backbone are questions that have troubled humankind since the dawn of history: Is there a God? and What is true faith? However, while these are fascinating questions, the perfunctory manner in which Nelson presents them doesn't do them justice. One scene in particular -- two characters sitting together gazing out across a darkened lake -- illustrates the gap between the film maker's intentions and the viewer's reaction. It's a reflective, melancholy moment, but lacks the profound spiritual texture that Nelson ascribes to it. As a philosophical excursion, EYE OF GOD falls short of the greatness to which it aspires. Its success comes through the manner in which it captures the day-to-day, mundane aspects of the human experience.
Since PULP FICTION, non-chronological storytelling has become popular. Many movies take this approach out of the belief that it will make them appear more cutting-edge, when, in reality, it often results in needless confusion and frustration on the viewer's part. With EYE OF GOD, however, Nelson has a legitimate reason for structuring the film as he does, and it works. His intent is not to tell the story linearly across time, but to group together scenes relating to the same subjects (relationships disintegrating, doomed characters moving towards their ends, etc.). While this approach diffuses some of the film's mystery potential, it replaces it with a different dynamic that retains our interest.
EYE OF GOD belongs in the same category as films like FARGO and SLING BLADE -- it's the latest of many entries into the suddenly hot, so-called "Southern Gothic" genre. Yet, because of its structure and the somewhat oblique manner in which it approaches its quietly appealing lead character, this is a different shade of noir. What matters here isn't the blood and murder, but the people, their relationships, and the concepts that define their lives and deaths. Nelson's approach to this material is ambitious, and, although he doesn't quite realize everything he hopes to, there's enough here to make EYE OF GOD worth a look when it's released commercially in the Fall of 1997.
- James Berardinelli e-mail: berardin@bc.cybernex.net ReelViews web site: http://www.cybernex.net/~berardin
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