Apartment Zero

This is an old review I wrote for an interesting, yet imperfect film 'Apartment Zero.' starring recent Oscar winner Colin Firth. Beware of spoilers:

I just finished watching 'Apartment Zero' and wow, what an incredibly fascinating film! There were many facets to it that were intriguing and that worked quite well, while others which I believe came off as a bit cheesy, dated and tacky.

First off, Colin Firth was absolutely brilliant as the character of Adrien. You could tell just what his whole life had been like up until the film started, just through the little tid bits and hints that they showed. A rather dull, sheltered and repressed existence which probably had a lot to do with his childhood of being born in Argentina but living in Britain, while he moved back to Buenos Aires in perhaps young adulthood. As a result he probably never fit in anywhere and found refuge through his mother, as well as films.

I absolutely loved the character arc. Where he starts off watching an old classic film in the empty theater, to leaving a packed porno theater at the end of the movie. That last scene where he walks out and sees that we, the audience has caught him at one of those places sent chills down my spine. It practically made up for quite a few of the films shortcomings.

The main problem I had with the film was the second half when it became increasingly apparent that Jack Carney turned out to be an American mercenary that took part in the Argentinian death squads. I know that they gave hints to it throughout the film, but I still believe that it kind of dated the film, as well as took away a lot of the mystique that the first half had.

Such mystique was wonderfully done in the first half with the sexual ambiguity of his character and his homosexual flirtations with many of the men in the building Adrien lived in. Those were some powerful and complex scenes with each man. Real fascinating character studies. Though it seemed to be dropped in the second half when this whole big plot thing regarding Jack being a mercenary drove the rest of the film. And there were all of those awkward slapstick scenes with Adrien's neighbors that I didn't like, especially when they thought that Adrien killed Jack and so they threw him down a few flights of stairs. Didn't work for me.

I simply think the last half or 2/5 could have been done a lot better. And didn't need to be related with recent historical matters in South America. I understand why it may have fit in thematically, but I bet there would have been better ideas out there than how the film turned out.

Bright Snow reflects the Isolated American mind in Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining'

Most people I know like to think of 'The Shining' as a classic horror film about a haunted hotel that is full of evil ghosts that drives the main caretaker/father to brutally murdering his family. This may work if this were your run of the mill mediocre horror film. But given director Stanley Kubrick's track record of quality films that usually provoke some deep thought, it should be obvious that this horror flick is going to be about more than that.

Like any brilliant film director Kubrick makes, the film is about much more than just a gruesome family haunted house story. It is a film that is both an examination of the power of one's imagination in isolated situations and when put under stress. While also providing a grim commentary on the American experience that entails themes of American familial issues to nuanced and the contradictions inherent in American history and culture.

The many labyrinths and corridors that are within the Overlook Hotel can be interpreted that the story is in fact a journey within the mind. Especially in the mind of Jack Nicholson's character in film. The fact that he is a writer alone is an indicator of the power of his imagination (probably the ability to 'shine' just like his son Danny). Since imagination generally has some basis in reality, one can reason that the 'inspiration' for the ghosts that Jack see come from the mere mentioning of the terrible things that happened in the Overlook Hotel with previous caretakers by the hotel managers in the film's beginning.

Just as a writer may take some fragment of reality or truth and convey it through a creative medium, Jack manifests this notion in his mind as he pushed further to insanity from his own stress, isolation and unhappiness. The unfortunate tragedy for Jack is how he is unable to direct this incredible force towards the story that he never is able to write. It is ironic that his own inability to write a story and the more sinister way his creativity is driven is what in fact drives the story of 'The Shining.'

It can also be noted that all of the ghastly figures that are shown in the film are seen by each character only to themselves. Jack never sees the gruesome ghosts of Delbert Grady's dead daughters. Neither Danny nor Wendy ever see the bartenders or the 1920s July 4th party. The only time they all share a similar vision of a 'ghost' is of the woman in room 237 who tried to strangle Danny. Perhaps the only reason Jack saw her was because Wendy had put the idea of this woman in his head. A fantasy/dream which turns into a nightmare that is surely directly related to his growing isolation in the hotel and from his family.

This theme of isolation is conveyed through various means in 'The Shining.' Besides the personal character driven psychological aspect of it that drives the story, the camera work and the set design that all visually address the American experience. From the very first scene of the film when we see Jack's car driving through the Colorado mountains, the use of wide angle lenses helps emphasize the vastness of the landscape this one tiny car is going through. Such imagery can be interpreted as a reference to American social-cultural ideals like manifest destiny and the ideal of the rugged American individual that can take on the vast swathes of land that lays in front of him.

These shots that shows this individual who is dwarfed by his surroundings is replicated throughout the film in various sequences within the Overlook Hotel. The perspective we get of the mountains towering over this tiny car is replaced by ceilings and walls that towers over Danny while he is riding his tricycle down the halls; or while Wendy is pushing the food cart with breakfast; or as Jack is dealing with writers block by bouncing a tennis ball against the wall. This constant imagery indicates that this family has surely bitten off more than it can chew in terms of fulfilling the job of care taking, but also functioning as a proper familial unit by American post-war baby boomer standards.

The film also instills some distinctly American archetypes that are reminiscent of  characters and settings in past American literature and history. The character of the black cook, Dick Hallorann is reminiscent of various classic black mentor in American literature like 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' and 'Huckleberry Finn.' It's quite a connection that Dick Hallorann's fate is quite similar to the fate of the black slave Tom in the former novel, he is gruesomely killed by Jack despite his selfless act.

The presence of Native American related motifs is prevalent as it is mentioned that the Overlook Hotel was built on an 'Indian Burial Ground' which, in fact had to repel some attacks during it's construction. This theme of the country's gruesome history with Native Americans can be seen throughout the setting of the hotel. As there are carpets and hangings on the wall which are reminiscent of Native American artwork.

All of this casts a bloody backdrop as well as complements the contradictions so prevalent in American society. This ideally idyllic American family that is personified by the Torrances is what most people go for or are told is their dream. Just as the hotel owners put the ideas of killing his family into Jack by mentioning the gruesome past caretaker incident, American society as a whole puts the ideas of the  American family into the heads of the masses.

It is no wonder that Jack Torrance is so unhappy, as he does have dreams to become a writer. Yet despite this rugged individualistic desire, he is tethered down by the norm of American society which is to get married and have a child. This is the root of Jack's self-destructive and ultimately murderous behavior.

The Torrance's stay at the Overlook Hotel in 'The Shining' can essentially be interpreted as a symbol for America. This over-sized and bloated country filled with contradictory dreams and ideas that can easily get perverted thanks to it's propensity for isolating itself and thus easily making dreams turn into nightmares.


Though obviously, it is not the most cheery interpretation of the film but it sure ain't a cheery movie, now is it? :)