Review | Home
This is a film about moments in
life. Some are so horrible you just want to forget them, but
can't; others-- and they are rare-- are perfect, but they don't
last. First time director Sofia Coppola, who also wrote the
screenplay, based on the novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, captures the
essence of those moments in `The Virgin Suicides,' which is much
more than `just' a film. It's a poem. And it's devastating. The
story is told from the collective point of view of four young
men, friends since childhood, who twenty years later are still
trying to put together the pieces of a puzzle and make some sense
of what happened those many years ago. All they know, even now,
is that the five Lisbon girls were their friends, and then they
were gone. And as you watch the story unfold-- like those
boys-now-men who can't forget-- you wonder how such a thing could
happen, as well.
Coppola (daughter of Francis Ford Coppola) makes a strong case
for the science of genetics, as her debut behind the camera as
writer/director is nothing less than brilliant. She does
everything to perfection. She knows her characters inside and out
and how to best bring them to life. And the film is so lyrically
presented. With her camera, she captures the beauty of nature, as
well as the beauty that can be found in the mundane, everyday
things that make up a life, using music and the juxtaposition of
images to optimum effect. Tragedy born of ugliness is one thing,
but when tragic events are so poetically rendered, it's like an
overwhelming darkness loosed upon the world from the abyss, which
blots out the nurturing light of the Sun. And that's what Coppola
has done with this film. She leads you through the beauty to find
the beast; and though you know what's coming, the impact of it
all is still staggering.
Central to the story is Lux, second youngest of the five
teenagers, a character wonderfully realized by the talented
Kirsten Dunst, whose angst is something to which everyone who has
ever been a teenager will be able to relate. Repressed and
sheltered, she nevertheless manages to express that spark of life
roiling just beneath the surface and begging to be freed. Dunst
plays her from deep within, with a richly textured performance
that is right on the money. And as Cecilia, the youngest of the
sisters, Hanna R. Hall gives a notable performance that is
poignant and introspective, which underscores the foreboding that
establishes the underlying tone of the film.
Excellent, also, as the other three sisters, are A.J. Cook
(Mary), Chelse Swain (Bonnie) and Leslie Hayman (Therese).
Coppola exacts memorable performances from each of them, and the
casting of this film was terrific. Physically, it is easy to
believe these five are sisters; and one especially-- Hayman--
bears a striking resemblance to Kathleen Turner, who plays Mrs.
Lisbon.
As the mother of the doomed girls, Kathleen Turner turns in a
performance fraught with subtle indications to the real key
behind the mystery of the suicides: The ever present cross she
wears around her neck, her actions following an especially
spirited sermon at Mass one Sunday, and the religious icons
present throughout the house, which combined with Mrs. Lisbon's
attitudes are very telling in themselves. She epitomizes the
overprotective parent in her futile attempts to shelter her girls
from the world. That she loves them is never in question; the
reasons behind her extreme position in their regard, however, is.
Are her actions really for `their own good,' or for hers? Is her
overprotection of them due to the fact that she doesn't want
anything untoward to happen to them for their sake, or is it
because she couldn't bear it herself? In the end, who is she
really protecting? Looking beautiful, but rather matronly-- as
befits the character-- Turner does an exemplary job of bring Mrs.
Lisbon to life. She is the pivotal character of the film, and she
makes the most of it with an extremely credible performance.
As Mr. Lisbon, James Woods gives an affecting performance with
his portrayal of a loving husband and father whose position is
never quite certain; he acquiesces to Mrs. Lisbon on just about
everything, but does have at least one moment when he is able to
reason with his wife on the girls' behalf and prevail.
Ultimately, however, it becomes a pivotal moment that leads to
tragic consequences. But Woods plays it well, taking a rather
middle-of-the-road stance with his character, who retreats into
his work as a math teacher when life gets too close.
The supporting cast includes Josh Hartnett (Trip), Michael Pare
(Adult Trip), Scott Glenn (Father Moody), Danny DeVito (Dr.
Horniker), Jonathan Tucker (Tim), Anthony DeSimone (Chase), Lee
Kagan (David), Noah Shebib (Parkie) and Joe Dinicol (Dominic).
Coppola's film is a taste of what it must be like to be a young
girl, growing up in a repressive environment and laden with the
reasonless guilt of a self-serving mother who finds sin even in
innocence. `The Virgin Suicides' is a brilliant, thought
provoking film that makes a profound statement about the artifice
of love and the inability to recognize denial in oneself,
especially in a parent who seeks to protect, perhaps, only to
assuage personal fear. A powerful, beautiful film, and without
question one of the best of the year (2000). I rate this one
10/10.
- jhclues