moonspinner55
British middle-agers with a handicapped daughter invite into their home a strange young man who holds a curious power over the family. Sting (then the lead singer and bassist of The Police) gives a commendable starring performance--his first lead--in this Dennis Potter concoction based upon Potter's own play (originally taped--and banned--by the BBC). Writing like a mischievous child, and aiming for lofty subtext and ironic turns of the screw, Potter doesn't always get the affects he's aiming for, but neither does he disappoint. Director Richard Loncraine doesn't struggle too noticeably getting this peculiar material off the dime (and out from the main set), and his build-up to the foregone conclusion is rife with interesting, twisted bits of business. Not a barn-burner by any means, but a handsome, calculated work in a minor, somewhat derivative key. **1/2 from ****
tresdodge
A middle class commuter belt couple Mr Bates (Denholm Elliot) and Mrs Bates (Joan Plowright) are duped into taking a charming young man Martin(Sting)into their house to help care for their catatonic daughter (Suzanna Hamilton). Martin claims to have been close to their daughter before an accident left her unable to communicate. As the film progresses the couple mistakenly start to trust Martin and dark family secrets are revealed.Originally a stage play written by Dennis Potter the film is in turn engrossing, disturbing and claustrophobic. Denholm Elliot is as ever brilliant as the lonely and disturbed father figure, Sting puts in a good performance as a strange and demonic young man, Joan Plowright is very good as the maternal and naive housewife.The two slight let downs for me were the music which I did'nt feel fitted in well with the film and the main fantasy sequence which did'nt stand the test of time well.Other than that the film held my attention throughout, the direction by Richard Loncraine was extremely capable, all in all an intriguing and idiosyncratic piece which is well worth a watch.
VicTheDaddy
Dennis Potter never made a drama that never had a point,its just that his work was so deep the point of his dramas wasn't always obvious,in fact you felt you needed a high IQ level to get your head around his work.The important message of this film is that we shouldn't always be so trusting towards strangers,especially ones who seem so angelic they may have ulterior motives and in this case he did.How many cases have there been where the mentally handicapped have been abused by their carers,its not that often but its enough.Plus cases of the elderly go into nursing homes and end up being shoved about,i think he was making a very strong point.Stings character was a wolf in sheep's clothing,i think in the original version he was played by Micheal Kitchen,who i feel played the part better,the original version has only been on TV once as it had been banned,and may still be.The original version does put the point across better,i feel the remake lacks this, probably because Sting whose much more well known as a singer wasn't a good choice,it just made the film seem bizarre,people went to see this film purely to see what his acting was going to be like,so the point of the story sort of got lost.Dennis Potter was quiet ingenious, he never made a controversial film for the sake of being controversial,there was much more to him than that.Although i must admit its a pretty disturbing film,not one you would easily forget.
jlaw
The film is re-make of a television play which the BBC chose not to transmit because of its controversial subject matter, in particular the final sequence of rape. This version which received a cinema release, appeared 6 years later, and included one member of the original cast, Denholm Elliot.The central role of Martin was re-cast with Sting (then lead singer with The Police) who also provided music material, including his first solo single Spread A Little Happiness. (Michael Nyman also provided soundtrack material.)The script remains largely faithful to the original screenplay, though several minutes of discourse in one of the final scenes is excised completely. This is a discussion of racism which provokes Mr Bates to retract from his outspoken racist views.The original TV play is set mostly within the confines of a living room, while thebigger-budget movie is less restricted, and has a Gothic, sinister atmosphere. References to Martin's diabolical nature are more subtle too the TV play shows Martin with hairy, clawed feet. The closing scene of the film suggests that Martin may have been caught out (by an angel or devil?), while the TV play implies that his actions within the Bates household are just one of many continuing abuses on a never-ending cycle.
AD
