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Just come back from seeing this. I was really looking forward to it, seeing as how I read the Patrick McGrath novel about a year ago and remember thinking "Hmmm... Cronenberg could make a really good movie out of this, but it's not his style".
And he HAS made a really good movie out of it. McGrath wrote the screenplay, which makes the differences between the two somewhat more interesting...
in the novel, Cleg has allegedly returned from some time in Canada, and is erudite and articulate.
Whereas in the movie, it's made clear that he's just been released from an asylum, and he can neither string a sentence together nor write in anything approaching English.
However, the character is identical. McGrath (and Cronenberg, and Fiennes) have obviously all got a coherent take on this character.
In the book, you're left to figure out for yourself the extent of Cleg's delusions... in the movie, you know you're headed for tragedy (because you already know you're watching its aftermath), therefore it's really a no-brainer to figure out what's going to happen. But that is not the point.
When I'm less drunk and less bowled over by this film, I'll post something more coherent. But as a study in mental distress, Spider is excellent, playing the "anti-Donnie Darko" card (madness=freedom/imagination versus madness=constraint/withdrawal). And it's the best film I've seen since Donnie Darko.
Best Cronenberg since Dead Ringers, I reckon. (But that's only on a first viewing, so I may change my mind later.) |
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