Down To The Bone

With all of the transit strike drama, I forgot to write about this amazing movie Tara and I saw. It is called Down To The Bone and it is probably not playing at a theater near you.

The film was at Sundance the same time Deadline was, almost two years ago (wow, that long ago!!!). The lead, Vera Farmiga, won a special award for her performance. I met one of the producers at a party. I know the editor. Many of my friends are friends with the director. And yet, I still could not get off my a** to see it.

The subject matter always scared me. I knew it was about a heroin addict and that it was a brutal movie to watch. Because I have seen so many bad movies about drug addicts, I was worried that the lead would be lying around naked, sticking needles in her arm with bad techno playing in the background. This was so not the case.

The movie is a small one. Not a lot happens but just enough, if that makes sense. Yes, she struggles with drugs but the movie says a lot more about the working poor than anything. Movies that are this dependent on small interactions, usually fail but this one does not. The Times called it "a small, beautifully faceted gem." I think that is just right. It ain't pretty to look at but it is the kind of DV filmmaking that actually works for the subject matter. Also, the ending is ambiguous but in a good way, not in a "I have no idea how to end this so I'll just stop writing" way.

And I could go on and on about how good Vera Farmiga is. What a real, complicated, compelling protagonist. Finally a great woman's role! Also, she is really stunning. I could not stop saying this to Tara. I have a new crush. I'd like to say that I discovered her but considering the fact that she is going to be in 4 new movies next year, one of which is Scorsese's new film as Matt Damon's love interest, the secret will be out on her soon. (I'd skip her new flick with Paul Walker coming out in January. He is really, really hot but can not act. At. All. I am assuming she needed to pay some bills.)

So, check this film out. It is only at The Quad Cinema in New York for a few more days but it is still in San Fran (at the Roxie, a favorite theater of mine) and in Santa Monica. Next up, Portland (so Jessica if you're reading this, check it out. This is so your kind of flick!).

Comments

[adriana]

Vera Farmiga is fantastic! I've seen her pop up in a bunch of films and on TV, most recently on Law & Order (old re-run) and The Manchurian Candidate. She had a fairly big role in Dummy (great movie!), but I've never seen her in a starring role. I must see this!