Detachment

Detachment

 This is a 2011 film directed by Tony Kaye, acted by Adrien Brody, and available on Netflix. Available on Netflix you say? Yes, I suggest watching it when you can because it's pretty rad. It's also depressing as shit. It's radpressing.

 Adrien Brody plays a substitute teacher (Henry) who works primarily in the inner city. It sounds like a standard white guy goes to inner-city and saves all the black kids from their culture kind of film, but it isn't like that at all. What I like about it most is that he doesn't really save anyone (he sort of saves a prostitute I guess). But, the students, not so much.

 The film is about a stark reality, and in that stark reality not many people get "saved". The students aren't fleshed out for the most part, but I don't think they need to be so much. The movie is about how Henry (Brody) views them and I don't think he's that "attached" to them. He plays a man who has been hurt a lot, and who doesn't want to feel much.

 He has a complicated relationship with his grandfather (his only living relative) and has a very young prostitute living with whom he takes care of. Other than that he doesn't really have anyone. He goes on a semi-date with a fellow teacher but it doesn't go far. He isn't a very talkative date.

 Some problems get fixed in the end. Others don't. I like that there are loose ends. I prefer a messily wrapped movie to a neatly wrapped one any day. Although you definitely have to be in a mood to watch this, and the mood is preferably not too sad, the movie will get you there without any extra help from your psyche.

 There are some over the top moments, one with Lucy Liu sticks out pretty memorably. Also Henry throws several desks at one point,well he throws one and then sort of topples the others in an awkward rage. I find a sort of purposeful approach to the over the topness.

 If you've ever felt like shit (I assume everyone has) you sort of assume that everything is shit, and then inevitably everything becomes shit. Henry isn't happy, and he sees the shitty bits in life and amplifies them in his mind, until he's sort of living in a shit tornado of sorts.

 Brody does a great job in this film (like most of his work). Almost every time the camera was on him you could see him feeling something. Even the titled feeling of detachment played well on his features. You could see it in his eyes, his cheeks, his body. I joke that even Brody's nose acts well in most of his film. Take special note of his nose in this one. His nose deserves an Oscar.

 This movie made me hold my breath and let it out slowly a lot, just to keep from being overwhelmed. It has its flaws ( a talented and under-utilized cast would be a major one) but it did what it needed to do for me. Beautiful chalkboard images, and visceral cut scenes made me feel very much what I assume the director intended. It played on the screen like a poem, flashes of images with little explanation and a lot of emotion.

 Watch it if you have the time, and comment what you thought of it below!

 ~Alena Ivanov

 Filmtered Content