Velvet Goldmine, director Todd
Haynes' (Safe)
much-anticipated look at the "glam rock" scene of two decades ago, is like a
jigsaw puzzle with half of the pieces missing. Even when it's finished, it
doesn't present a complete or compelling picture. Haynes' style, which is
designed to evoke the '70s rather than rigorously re-create them, is an
experiment in excess. Always artsy and occasionally pretentious, it drowns out
any hope that there might be a real character or two lurking somewhere in the
jumbled, virtually-incoherent plot.
Velvet Goldmine straddles two time periods: the early 1970s and 1984
(and, thrown in for good measure, there's also a brief prologue in 1854 Dublin,
featuring a young Oscar Wilde). The framing story, which uses a Citizen
Kane approach, occurs a decade after the fragmented main narrative, and
centers on Arthur Stuart (Christian Bale), a journalist researching the
whereabouts of a '70s singer/performer named Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers),
who disappeared from the public view after his on-stage "assassination" was
revealed to be a hoax. Back in the glam rock era, Stuart had been a fan of
Slade's, and now he finds himself interviewing people he once gazed upon from
afar: Slade's ex-wife, Mandy (Toni Collette); his former male lover and fellow
glam rocker, Curt Wild (Ewan McGregor); and his first manager (Michael Feast).
Gradually, Stuart begins to put together a picture of Slade, his music, and his
times. The portrait is one of unrestrained debauchery, drug use, and bisexual
sex.
Films like Velvet Goldmine, which focus on audio and visual
extravagances to the exclusion of almost all else (including an engaging story)
are frequently referred to as "triumphs of style over substance." In this case,
however, I hesitate to use the word "triumph" to describe any aspect of the
movie. While it's true that Velvet Goldmine is initially fresh to look
at, the effect quickly grows repetitious, and the film seems destined to drag on
forever. In trying to build a sense of time and place, Haynes sabotages his
characters. No one in this movie is well-developed or capable of capturing the
audience's attention. The style doesn't just distance the viewer from the screen
personalities, it severs any connection. I didn't for a moment believe that any
of these people are real, even though they are loosely based on genuine icons
like David Bowie and Iggy Pop.
To be fair, there is one thing that Velvet Goldmine does well, and
that's to create an entire soundtrack of '70s-sounding songs that could easily
be mistaken for remnants of the recent musical past. Also of interest are some
of the performances. Jonathan Rhys-Meyers gives a courageous turn as Slade,
although, to be frank, his role is more about how he looks (effeminate features,
long hair, makeup, etc.) than how he acts. Ewan McGregor, who (in what is
becoming a trademark for him) offers a quick view of the Full Monty, is almost
completely unrecognizable as Wild. Eddie Izzard is wonderful as Slade's tough,
money-grubbing manager. Unfortunately, all of this flamboyant company has the
effect of making Christian Bale (not the strongest performer in good
circumstances) come across as flat and uninteresting.
From a purely photographic standpoint, Velvet Goldmine offers a few
interesting moments, such as the "$" signs that appear in a manager's eyes as he
contemplates how much money he can make by teaming Wild and Slade, or the sight
of a spaceship flying over a pair of men about to make love. Anyone who didn't
know that Haynes is gay would be able to guess it from the way Velvet
Goldmine is shot. While men are frequently depicted in an eroticized
fashion, women are presented clinically. In Haynes' hazy, psychedelic world,
men, not women, are the sexual objects.
One line of dialogue from Velvet Goldmine sums up my opinion of the
film: "What started out as an interesting experiment has turned into a demeaning
waste of time." Those with a particular interest in this genre of music or the
time period may find something worthwhile in Velvet Goldmine. Everyone
else will find themselves looking for all those pieces of the puzzle that Haynes
forgot to include.
From movie-reviews.colossus.net
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