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One of the most remarkable things
about the Age of Innocence is that is directed by Martin Scorsese
(who fell in love with the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by
Edith Wharton). It is a story set in the 1870's among the
highest member of New York Society. Full of poised affectations
and tiny gestures that have more meaning than the words being
spoken it doesn't seem the kind of material the director of
Mean Streets, Raging Bull and Goodfellas would be remotely
interested in or well suited for.
The film is one filled with a meticulous
and obsessive attention to nuance and detail. It has been
sumptiously produced and I can't resist calling it exquisite.
The film is still full of the Scorsese
staples of people who hide behind false facades and wind up
being duplicitous and more than willing to backstab, use and
cheat anyone necessary, to have a successful outcome of their
objectives. The difference is, these people are not working
class, whose language is laced with obscenity and whose world
is punctuated with outbreaks of sudden violence --instead
we have society folks of impeccable manners and grace.
Very little is what it seems to
be at the surface and everything has to be deciphered from
studying the behaviors and gestures of those around you. However,
there is no guidebook to deciphering exactly what people might
mean. The eyes, the hands, a nod… hold meanings that tell
a lot, perhaps too much. Everyone remains almost as polite
and graceful to their friends, family and loved ones as they
do to their enemies or the people they are in the process
of betraying.
It is in watching the rituals and
getting to understand the details that we gradually come to
understand the power-plays being orchestrated by the players
in subtle ways.
The players are making and breaking
alliances, making sure their wealth is transferred properly
from generation to generation and that marriages are set up
to further alliances that keep the wealth within a small cluster
of the privileged. Love and passion exists but it is kept
secret and hidden since it would vulgar and downright scandalous
to do otherwise.
Newland Archer (Daniel Day-Lewis)
in engaged to marry the prim proper young and not too smart
May Welland (Winona Ryder). Everyone, including Newland is
happy with the arrangement. Then Newland sees cousin Ellen,
the Countess Olenska (Michelle Pfeiffer) at the opera. She
is not only beautiful but she also doesn't play the same games
as the people Newland is used to do. She speaks her mind,
she has broken rules and married outside of the circle. She
married a rich Polish count and has lived in Europe for several
years, but now is separated and possibly in the process of
ending her marriage. It's a threat to the order of things
and perhaps a threat to the marriage of Newland and May. Slowly
we get to know the players and how each of them plays the
game. Even May slowly reveals the marriage is important to
her and worth fighting for. We're guided through the film
by a narrator (Joanne Woodward) who helps us understand the
rules of this society and lets us peak inside some of the
characters private thoughts. As we understand more about who
everyone is and their motivations and how everything works
we realize as Newland does he is not free to make his own
decisions. The film builds not to a stunning revelation or
an explosion of violence but to a moment of poignancy that
is beautifully presented.
You're right if you're thinking
this sounds a lot like something Merchant-Ivory would make.
The characters are rich, everything is balanced with order
and ritual and elegance. Scorsese keeps his camera moving,
but it moves slowly and gracefully throughout the film. There's
no obscenity and none of the brutal violence you've come to
expect from a Scorsese film.
Michael Balhaus artful cinematography,
Thelma Schoonmaker's editing, and Dante Ferreti's production
design along with Speed Hopkins art direction make Martin
Scorsese look better than he's ever been before. The colors
often bleed with rich reds which are like embers of the passions
hiding just below the surface of proper mannerisms. The sensuousness
that is revealed with a kiss of the hand, or a seemingly innocent
gesture is downright erotic.
The surfaces are cold, and it's
perhaps a little difficult to connect with any of these characters.
Wharton manipulates these spoiled class of people and Scorsese
in turn manipulates Wharton. However if you make the effort
to do so you will be richly rewarded. It's a film that requires
patience, and your full focus and attention. It's a slow,
subtle film. To some it is too slow, too stuffy, and on the
surface dull. However the more attention you pay to its details
the richer the film reveals itself to be. That's something
you rarely get in films. And your patience is amply rewarded
with a rich experience.
The performance are all good, some
like Ryder's are much better than you could imagine. At first
seeing these particular actors playing these people doesn't
seem right. But it works beautifully and the previous personalities
of the actors recede until a strong ensemble of well cast
performers emerges. It also helps that the leads are stunning
in appearance. Michelle Pfeiffer has rarely looked better
and few ladies complain about Daniel Day-Lewis
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