"Shame," McQueen's second feature film (after
2008's "Hunger"), is a harrowing look at human misery. The main
character, played very well by Michael Fassbender, on the surface looks great.
He's fit, handsome, sexy, well-educated, and prosperous. He gets any woman or
man he wants and enjoys the life of the 21st-century Manhattan playboy.
But inside, something is terribly wrong. His sex drive is so
compulsive that it threatens to capsize his life. When his boss discovers that
his work computer is filled to overflowing with pornography, the first sign of
imbalance appears. Also disturbing is his near-constant masturbation and sex
with strangers.
When we meet his sister (played beautifully by Carey
Mulligan), we see that trouble runs in the family. The script never indicates
what happened in their childhoods, but these siblings are clearly haunted by
something.
There has been much press about the sexual explicitness of
"Shame" and the full-frontal nudity of Fassbender. I'm happy to
report that this has been greatly exaggerated. Fassbender does very little
full-frontal and doesn't do many butt shots either. This is not a titillating
film at all. It is a depiction of human frailty and suffering. I'm embarrassed
to make reference to Fassbender's private parts. But the press has been so
obsessed with this that I felt obliged to do some truth-telling with regard to
it.
It's quite a depressing statement about American culture
today that critics have so fixated on the nudity in this film.
"Shame" may not be a great film, but it's certainly not soft-core
porn! I feel sorry for the morons who will see this movie hoping for
titillation. They are in for quite a shock.
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