Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997) Rated R for language and brief violence ---------- Out of 4 stars: ***1/2 (3 1/2 Stars)
Starring: Kevin Spacey, John Cusack, Lady Chablis, Jude Law, Jack Thompson, Alison Eastwood.
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL's ad campaign is magnificent, in my opinion. I first heard about this film upon seeing a magazing ad for it; not from previews, not from word of mouth. Without seeing any of the trailers, I immediately wanted to see it. If you haven't seen this ad, I will explain a little. The ad shows a luscious green garden. This garden is shot with a wide angle lens, and in the background, a small green statue stands alone. Were it not for the ray of sunlight hitting the statue, you probably wouldn't be able to see it. The visual style of this ad is quite incredible, and this alone made me want to see it.
Now that I said that, I must admit that I have never read the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Despite this, the film MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL is highly entertaining. For more than 2 and a half hours, I sat enthralled by the eccentric characters portrayed on screen. What makes it even more entertaining is the fact that everything going on IS fact. The novel, written by John Berendt, is a non-fiction book, and realizing this makes it a lot more fun to watch. In fact, you don't necessarily watch this movie -- you experience it.
A lot goes on in Clint Eastwood's film, and yet, it doesn't seem like a typical Eastwood movie. It doesn't seem like a typical Hollywood film, period. Eastwood is one of the few directors who have complete control over every aspect of a movie (others include Stanley Kubrick and Woody Allen). However, perhaps a little help could have aided Eastwood with his version of the best-selling book. While it is visually stunning, and very fun to watch, something is missing. Was it present in the novel? Perhaps, but I can't be sure. The motion picture lacks emotional connection with the audience, with many characters who seem distant and superficial. Among them include one of the main characters, John Kelso (John Cusack), a character loosely based on Berendt himself. Kelso is the narrator and the audience's representation on screen, yet we can't really relate to him. Cusack has a very natural appearance, but his character was obviously created for the film (I doubt Kelso was a physical character in the book).
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN begins with Kelso arriving in Savannah, Georgia to cover a Christmas party for a popular magazine. The party is hosted by a rich Jim Williams (Kevin Spacey) who seemingly has something to hide behind his suave persona. Williams takes Kelso on a tour of his house, and explains that there will be two parties: one that night, and one the next. The first is for bachelors only, and Kelso declines to attend, but the next night, he does attend. There, he meets a wide variety of characters from women who plan on shooting their husbands, to a greasy-haired sex toy (Jude Law). That same night, Williams shoots Billy Hanson (Law) in self-defense. Unfortunately, due to some mysterious coincidences, Williams is thrown into jail to await a trial. Perhaps Williams shot Billy for a different reason. The final hour and a half of the film mainly focuses on the trial, which is actually the slowest part of the entire movie. Before this, we get to see the lifestyles of many of the characters.
The most interesting character is Williams, but the most fun to watch is Lady Chablis (played by Ms. Chablis herself). Chablis is a wildly colorful character, who needs to go to a doctor in order to get female hormone injections (if you know what I mean). If you don't know what I mean, Chablis is a transvestite. Chablis steals many scenes and gives one of the most memorable performances in the film. In fact, the entire first hour and a half is extremely entertaining, as we get to watch all these wacky characters arrive on screen. Perhaps the only throw-away character is Mandy Nichols (Alison Eastwood), the love interest of Kelso. The relationship seems artificial, and Nichols is one of the few "normal" characters present. I wonder what purpose her character really served other than to make ol' Pop proud. Most of the other characters, however, do have some different way of doing things: one guy has flies attached to hiim and threatens to poison the town's water supply if the food isn't good; another guy walks an imaginary dog who died several years earlier. Minerva (Irma P. Hall) is a voodoo expert who helps Williams with his conscience, in a way. Then there is Sonny Seiler (Jack Thompson), the defense attorney working for Williams. Seiler is one of the best characters in the film, and his courtroom scenes almost seen ripped from a John Grisham novel. And then there is Judge Oliver (played by the real Sonny Seiler) whose reactions seem natural and unforced.
The trial itself is the moral standing point of the film. We learn secrets hidden by characters, and some seem to play an outcome in the trial. Williams reveals that Billy was his lover, at which point the jury seems fixated on convicting him... not for murdering a human being, but for being homosexual. With this revelation, other characters also begin to reveal secrets, from an emergency room nurse who bagged the hands of the victim, to the friend of Billy (who also reveals homosexual tendencies). Many of these courtroom scenes could have been overacted and played foolishly, but Eastwood restrains his actors and holds them back. As a result, everything which occurs seems very realistic. We are not forced to having miraculous discoveries which lead to the conviction or release of a character, as in other courtroom dramas; instead, everything occurs at an easy pace with no scene being rushed anymore than it has to. The final outcome subtley reflects the title perfectly: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
Despite all the characters and plots and subplots, the most impressive thing about MIDNIGHT is the technical details. Eastwood's Savannah seems to jump right off the screen with lush greens and moody oranges. I could almost smell the moisture in the air. The set design is very impressive, though probably could have been even more outrageous than what it is. The most memorable aspect of this set, of course, is the smaller version of the Lady of Justice statue. This little green statue has a face of mystery and wonder, holding one plate in each hand (again, symbolic of the title). Eastwood bookends the film with this statue: one shot of it at the title scene, and one at the very end, which holds as the credits roll by. The cinematography, by Jack N. Green, adds a lot to the visuals, but Eastwood isn't another David Fincher (THE GAME). His visuals are relaxed and more unfocused. The music, composed by Lennie Niehaus, is haunting and pleasant to listen to. The adapted screenplay is one of the highlights, with smart dialogue and an unusual story structure. You can never tell where the film might go next. This unpredictability is very much welcome by this reviewer, especially after seeing films like THE JACKAL.
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL is rated R for language and brief violence. Most of the language comes from Lady Chablis whose comedy act is riddled with sexual innuendos and funny one-liners. MIDNIGHT is one of those few films which time seems irrelevant, as the 154 minute long film flew by. If the movie does have flaws, it is mainly from the lack of emotional connection with the audience. In fact, I'm pretty sure that MIDNIGHT was a very difficult film to adapt for the screen. Watching this movie makes me want to read the novel, but I think that would just spoil the fun of this movie. Maybe not.
Reviewed by Respect (respect@aros.net) http://www.aros.net/~respect/movies.html
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