8mm (Film Review)
1999 Sony/Columbia Pictures
Directed by: Joel Schumacher; Written by: Andrew Kevin Walker
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Joaquin Phoenix, James Gandolfini, Peter Stormare, and Anthony Heald
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 123 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 9/10
P.I., Tom Welles, is called to the home of a rich widow whose steel magnate husband has recently passed away. She's found an old 8mm film reel in his safe of secret belongings, and it turns out the roll of celluloid is far from a happy family movie; it's a snuff film, where a young woman is murdered by a masked behemoth wielding a machete. Though Tom has his doubts about the veracity of the film, the old widow has two requests: find out if the film is real and if it is, find out who the girl was. Soon, the straight-laced, family man P.I. is waist deep in the grimy underbelly of the Hollywood pornographic industry. What he finds will change his life...and crack his soul in two.
1999's 8mm cracked a financial profit for its studio, but the critics of the time reviled the film, dismissing it as exploitative filth. That's strange, as 8mm takes a firm stance against the exploitation of the weak by the strong, while also taking a hard look at the high price of justice. It's rather strange that critics who make their living off the Hollywood machine would cry foul when a film looks at the darkness underneath that machine...right? I mean, surely sexual assault and murder NEVER happens in Hollywood, right? It's a town of saints, where the more power someone has, the better they behave, right? RIGHT?!
8mm is a brave film that goes to places angels fear to tread, though in this case, the angels definitely aren't angels. The film draws a clear moral line BUT does not beat the viewer over the head with moral platitudes, particularly in regard to the themes of vengeance and justice in its latter half. Despite its violent moments and the extremity of its content, 8mm is layered with nuance. Joel Schumacher may have directed Batman and Robin, but he's also a seasoned vet who both knows his way around visual design and great storytelling. Schumacher brings the absolute best out of his lead, Nicolas Cage, here, and Cage brings the best out of Schumacher. The film features none of the stereotypical Cageisms, and even when the incredible, legendary actor goes big late in the film, it's in unique ways that suit the film's themes and tone perfectly.
However, a cursory viewing of 8mm may not reveal its depth. The viewer may miss the visual parallels between Welles raking his yard, and the leaf-raking servant on the widow's estate, who the camera reveals when Welles first visits. They may miss that the deceased old man who owned the 8mm film was a steel magnate, and that Cage's father was a steelworker. They might miss the subtle moment the central case moves from professional to personal for Cage, the slow evolution of his tone and word choices throughout the constant phone calls he makes throughout the film. 8mm showcases constant, deliberate and intentional choices, by Schumacher, by Cage, that reveal themselves upon repeat viewings, with top-notch visual work heightened by brilliant cinematography from Robert Elswit (Paul Thomas Anderson's go to guy), and unique and wonderful production touches, like the stunning Moroccan-infused score by Mychael Danna. 8mm is a film I was hesitant to see, but after time. it's grown to become one of my favorites in Cage's vast and storied filmography.
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Joaquin Phoenix, James Gandolfini, Peter Stormare, and Anthony Heald
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 123 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 9/10
P.I., Tom Welles, is called to the home of a rich widow whose steel magnate husband has recently passed away. She's found an old 8mm film reel in his safe of secret belongings, and it turns out the roll of celluloid is far from a happy family movie; it's a snuff film, where a young woman is murdered by a masked behemoth wielding a machete. Though Tom has his doubts about the veracity of the film, the old widow has two requests: find out if the film is real and if it is, find out who the girl was. Soon, the straight-laced, family man P.I. is waist deep in the grimy underbelly of the Hollywood pornographic industry. What he finds will change his life...and crack his soul in two.
1999's 8mm cracked a financial profit for its studio, but the critics of the time reviled the film, dismissing it as exploitative filth. That's strange, as 8mm takes a firm stance against the exploitation of the weak by the strong, while also taking a hard look at the high price of justice. It's rather strange that critics who make their living off the Hollywood machine would cry foul when a film looks at the darkness underneath that machine...right? I mean, surely sexual assault and murder NEVER happens in Hollywood, right? It's a town of saints, where the more power someone has, the better they behave, right? RIGHT?!
8mm is a brave film that goes to places angels fear to tread, though in this case, the angels definitely aren't angels. The film draws a clear moral line BUT does not beat the viewer over the head with moral platitudes, particularly in regard to the themes of vengeance and justice in its latter half. Despite its violent moments and the extremity of its content, 8mm is layered with nuance. Joel Schumacher may have directed Batman and Robin, but he's also a seasoned vet who both knows his way around visual design and great storytelling. Schumacher brings the absolute best out of his lead, Nicolas Cage, here, and Cage brings the best out of Schumacher. The film features none of the stereotypical Cageisms, and even when the incredible, legendary actor goes big late in the film, it's in unique ways that suit the film's themes and tone perfectly.
However, a cursory viewing of 8mm may not reveal its depth. The viewer may miss the visual parallels between Welles raking his yard, and the leaf-raking servant on the widow's estate, who the camera reveals when Welles first visits. They may miss that the deceased old man who owned the 8mm film was a steel magnate, and that Cage's father was a steelworker. They might miss the subtle moment the central case moves from professional to personal for Cage, the slow evolution of his tone and word choices throughout the constant phone calls he makes throughout the film. 8mm showcases constant, deliberate and intentional choices, by Schumacher, by Cage, that reveal themselves upon repeat viewings, with top-notch visual work heightened by brilliant cinematography from Robert Elswit (Paul Thomas Anderson's go to guy), and unique and wonderful production touches, like the stunning Moroccan-infused score by Mychael Danna. 8mm is a film I was hesitant to see, but after time. it's grown to become one of my favorites in Cage's vast and storied filmography.
Comments