SLEUTH
High-Tech
House Of Games, With Round Three Approaching
PopcornReel.com Movie Review: "Sleuth"
By Omar P.L. Moore/October 13, 2007
Jude Law as Milo Tindle and Michael Caine as Andrew Wyke in the art of slickery
and trickery, in Kenneth Branagh's "Sleuth", a strong remake of the 1972
original, which opened in New York and Los Angeles on October 12. "Sleuth"
expands its release in the U.S. and into Canada on October 19. Law and
Branagh were two of the six producers of the new film. (Photos: Sony
Pictures Classics)
printer-friendly
"What's it all about?", Jude Law's Milo Tindle character asks Michael Caine's Andrew Wyke
character during the first hour of the lively and entertaining "Sleuth",
directed by stage titan Kenneth Branagh and sublimely written by veteran playwright and
stage/screen directing legend Harold Pinter. While Mr. Branagh's "Sleuth"
is preceded by the same-titled film that starred Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine
(as Milo Tindle) in
1972 -- Pinter adapted the script and play written then by Anthony Shaffer -- the line
spoken by Mr. Law in the new edition has a touch of irony and is apropos, for both Caine
and Law played the title character in the two film versions of "Alfie", in
which the song "What's It All About, Alfie?", rings through as a theme.
Pinter's razor-sharp script renders the question Mr. Law asks moot, as we know
(and often guess) what will happen to one or both of these exciting characters.
Pinter's words jump off the screen at us, each one puncturing our minds and
pushing our buttons. In the psychological battle of wits and cunning
between Andrew and Milo, almost every word and every sentence is spoken by these
antagonists to
lacerate the heart of the opponent. This is male swagger and vulnerability played out
to its
apex. Menace, mayhem, and even a little camp complexity spices up this
delicious tale of an unemployed actor (Law) and a renowned millionaire mystery
novelist (Caine) who spend two days and nights at Wyke's mansion home in the
English countryside. There is more to this meeting than meets the eye, for
it is not merely happenstance. Milo has come to tell Andrew that he is
having an affair with Andrew's wife (whom we never see) and that he is her
messenger: she wants a divorce. Soon, the pleasantries dissolve into mind
games, sleights-of-hand, and deception.
Wyke's swank mansion is filled with all the technological accoutrements of the
twenty-first century: sparkling designer monitors and cameras, sleek designer
chairs and high-tech security equipment -- this is the production design strength
exhibited by Tim Harvey. And the cinematography by Haris Zambarloukous
gives off a discotheque feel, wrapped in a degree of cool blue darkness and
florescence. The costume design by Alexandra Byrne gives Mr. Caine a sleek
presence, while Mr. Law looks a vagabond in his wardrobe. In other words,
every move in "Sleuth" is a calculated move on a chess board, but the grandest
moves of all come from both actors as well as editor Neil Farrell. When
Caine and Law's words push and pull each other toward a vortex named battle
royal, it is Mr. Farrell who sets up the jousting with his editing precision. When you have Mr.
Pinter's emotional anguish and entanglement threaded through ever prescient
words, the brilliance of British actors
two generations apart, and the smooth, subtle direction of actor and director
Kenneth Branagh (who is currently filming "Valkyrie"), you can't lose.
"Sleuth" is a treat, and especially so if you haven't seen the original
1972 film. Caine and Law are excellent in their roles, but Law is
something special to watch in particular. The new film is a quick and dirty exercise in one-upmanship,
using the absence of woman as a traditional male objectification to humiliate and pierce the soul of man.
Many films objectify women and place a virtually catatonic actor in a film where two men fight
over her while she remains helpless, but in this film we don't see the wife that Caine and Law are toiling and tormenting each other over. Intelligent,
sophisticated and sly, "Sleuth" is also slick and seductive, a
thinking man's guilty pleasure.
A grand foursome: "Sleuth" director Kenneth Branagh (left) standing with the film's
star and producer Jude Law, with acting titan Michael Caine (in both "Sleuth"
films) and legendary playwright/director Harold Pinter, both seated, over 70,
and still marching on. Pinter adapted Andrew Shaffer's 1972 screenplay for
the new version.
"Sleuth" is rated R for strong language by the Motion Picture Association of
America. The film's duration is one hour and 26 minutes. The film
opened in New York and Los Angeles yesterday, and opens elsewhere in the U.S.
and Canada next weekend (October 19.)
Copyright The Popcorn Reel. PopcornReel.com. 2007. All Rights
Reserved.