Michael Fassbender’s stock has risen quickly with me. Fassbender first came to my attention with an excellent performance in the otherwise mediocre Centurion. Since that time, it seems he has been in everything. When I started seeing the trailers for Shame, I knew this was a must-see film. Although not a strictly plot-oriented film, I was not disappointed.
In Shame, Fassbender plays Brandon Sullivan, a hopeless sex addict. The film glosses over the source of Fassbender’s addiction, which permeates every area of his life. From his work computer (which is infested with porn-related glitches and viruses) to his extensive stash of pornography. Sullivan is an attractive guy that can easily prey on even the prettiest women in the bar. But his appetite normally extends to prostitutes, who do more than just whet his appetite for kinky sex.
We get a bit of insight into Sullivan’s past with the arrival of his sister Sissy (Carrie Mulligan). While Sullivan has a filthy addiction, his home is a sterile environment marked by cleanliness and order. Sissy does not share her brother’s neat tendencies, leaving a trail of crumbs, dirty clothes and disorder in her wake. We sense a strange history when Sissy seems completely unfazed by Brandon walking in on her while she is in the shower. Instead of trying to hide her nudity, she almost seems to relish in her brother’s discomfort. While we get a sense that the siblings experienced traumatic events when they were younger, we are left guessing what those experiences might have been.
As Sullivan struggles with his sexual demons, we barely scrape the surface of his closest relationships. His sister’s presence seems to create a lot of stress while his relationship with his boss seems to be more of a close friendship that is never fully explored, either. His addiction may seem very different from drug addiction, but the symptoms aren’t that far apart. Our voyeuristic endeavor into Sullivan’s sexual deviance provides insight into the struggles of an addiction that seems taboo to discuss in our society. It is an interesting character study, in spite of a storyline that shuns traditional plot devices for a more intimate examination of the topic through the eyes of the main character. Some additional background would have added flavor to the story, which almost felt forced at times.
Shame works because Fassbender gave himself over completely to the role. Not many male actors would be willing to walk around the set completely nude and utterly (udderly?) exposed. Most actors are also not packing heat like Fassbender. But Fassbender did more than just expose himself literally. He allowed his character to be vulnerable in other ways that really allows the audience to connect with his struggles. While I hoped for more history between Brandon and Sissy, the characters were brought to life by two excellent performances. Mulligan delivered a performance that left her character off-balance but alluring. Her breathy rendition of New York, New York was a bonus. While it was a bit slow, her pitch was excellent. I initially was put off by the song, but found myself enjoying her interpretation by the time the song was finished. This scene was informative in regards to the relationship between the siblings, but still left more questions unanswered than resolved. The casting for this film was spot on.
The rating is going to limit the distribution of this film. The movie was not intended for broad audiences and seemed more geared towards examining boundaries than strict story-telling. I was okay with the subject matter, which pushed the envelope without ever really getting controversial. The film has plenty of nudity and several sex scenes, but none of them made me squirm. I found the handling of the sexual content was actually delicate even when the subject matter involved prostitution, homosexuality, multiple partners, internet pornography and masturbation. These topics were covered in a credible manner, not gratuitously. The nudity was clearly the reason that Shame earned an NC-17 rating from the MPAA. There was some drug and alcohol use and strong language, but sexual content is clearly the hinge for the rating. This story would have lost effectiveness had Steve McQueen tried for an R rating. The sexual content was contextual and well managed. It is worthwhile and pertinent to the character study.
I thought Shame was brilliant in many ways, although it had plenty of room for improvement. I enjoyed the characters and thought the portrayal of Brandon’s addiction was carefully considered. The contextual aspect of the sexual content was handled in a way that did not make audiences uncomfortable while exposing them to an addiction that is generally a taboo subject in our society. The story alludes to childhood events that are never explored. The relationships between Sullivan and his boss also fell short of the mark for me. I would have liked a bit more background on his character and how he arrived at the point in his life where our story begins. With a character driven story that lacks a more concrete plot, the story suffers from not painting a full portrait of the character. In spite of that short-coming, I thoroughly enjoyed the performances which helped the characters walk off the screen for me. 8/10.
New York, New York
