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Has anyone seen this yet? I watched it today on dvd. It is a strange film filled with conspiracies, murder, fluid sexualities, and an indictment of what the main character Carter Page III calls "revenge politics." It seems as if Schrader is attempting to cast an intense gaze on the incestous nature of Washington society, politics, and scandal.
One element which I found extremely interesting was the choice of photos displayed in the boyfriend's studio. many of the images were direct representations of the infamous Abu Gharib photos. It is as if Schrader is making the argument that what some may perceive as indicators of the brutal truth of this 'war on terror' is for others nothing more than another lucrative product by which to earn recognition and money. This strategy of using photos to speak to broader concerns reminds me of the 1976 film Eyes of Laura Mars.
It would seem as Schrader has grown older that his interests have become more deeply focused and political. Yet, it is possible to argue that the subtext of this film, like so much of contemporary life in America is the dark clouds of illusion that sedate the voting populace. Perhaps Scott McClellan spoke out to late, but there are definite lessons to be learned from looking and analyzing the bleak, nihilistic attitudes found within American pop culture today.

filmnoir1 wrote:Has anyone seen this yet?

I finally caught up with it on DVD and enjoyed it very much. You make some great observations and I also thought Woody Harrelson was fantastic in it -- easily the best thing he's done since The People vs. Larry Flynt. I thought the scenes where he's playing cards with rich, politico wives were priceless. I felt that the film got a tad predictable once it slipped into thriller mode towards the end but I still found that it was nice continuation of the "night worker" protagonist from American Gigolo and Light Sleeper (Schrader even snuck in a couple of visual nods to both films).

I liked it too, and it did a nice job of reversing my expectations. Woody Harrelson appears (at first) to be the epitomy of all that was once considered "degenerate" - he's from high culture, he's gay, and he spends his life dishing the dirt and escorting wealthy women. Turns out he is a highly moral man with an ethical compass and a sense of loyalty to his friends, and his character has strength enough to put himself at some risk for the greater good.
Certain story and plot aspects were not entirely satisfying, but, I actually enjoyed all of this as something of a "mood piece" and good enough to make me really appreciate a performance from an actor I never particularly liked.

Interesting about Bacall demanding so much praise. After all these years she's still wildly insecure about herself. Yet on screen she's a dynamo. As I've said this is some of the very best work she's ever done. Her big climactic scene with Woody Harrelson took my breath away. She NAILED every line -- like Callas doing an aria.

David Ehrenstein wrote:Interesting about Bacall demanding so much praise. After all these years she's still wildly insecure about herself.

Probably because she will forever be in Bogie's shadow. I can't wait to see this fim, and Bacall is a big reason. She has chosen some really challenging films in the last few years (Dogville, Manderlay, Birth) and has been great in all of them. Her presence onscreen is singular and undeniable.