VHS : I Want You [1998]

Rating: - Underrated trawl through the realms of obsession
Winterbottom doesn’t make conventional British films. His work has the austere demeanour and freewheeling sense of experimentation that we normally associate with the European aesthetic of filmmakers like Kieslowski or Bergman. This ideology is further established on the film in question, with the director employing A Short Film About Killing’s cinematographer Slavomir Idziak to create the noirish underworld of disintegrating costal beach-huts and seedy promenades where his mysterious characters come to congregate. It’s one of those films that puts atmosphere before everything else... a film in which the long pauses between dialog, and the odd sideways glance of a character says more than an expositionary line of dialog ever could. If you have a problem with films like this, the kind that leave questions and images lingering in the viewer’s mind for weeks to follow, then leave now... this one isn’t for you.

The plot is, on first glance, a simple one... relying on a series of emotional triggers, whilst playing with the usual cinematic chronology to go backwards and forwards into an event from the past. However, as we further explore the films sub-textual ideas, and the shadowy morals of the central quartet of characters, we discover hidden depths that have more to do with perception, memory and perspective. Winterbottom sets up an idea that each character sees an event in a certain way... so we have multiple viewpoints all jostling for our attention. The resulting plot becoming much more of a puzzle, as we are further immersed within the shocking incident that bookends the narrative. Added to this, we are also given a narrator who cannot be trusted, which in turn leads us into a series of twists which expose the characters true intentions. The ultimate pay off comes right out of nowhere and knocks us off our feet... as the director subverts everything that we’ve seen and turns it into an almost epiphany. It’s one of the most satisfying pay offs to a crime thriller that I have ever seen.

The photography of Idziak takes us into further labyrinthine realms that perfectly complement the seedy atmosphere and perpetual drive of lust and obsession... with each of the scenes relying on various colour filters that not only highlight the mood, but also act as a visual anchor to the characters and the emotional context of that moment. The music too is detailed and significant, with Winterbottom using a series of musical motifs to expressionistically represent the emotional underlining of the characters... in a film that relies on sound as such an integral component of the script; this is expertly handled. The inclusion of Elvis Costello’s eponymous anthem (from which the film takes it’s title) is totally relevant, and certainly adds a much-needed sense of reality to the self-contained world of the plot. The central performances only help to give the film an added depth, with the two youngsters (Luka Petrusic & Lubina Mitevska) complement the more seasoned members of the cast perfectly. In the lead role of Helen, Weisz exudes a provocative, sexual energy, whilst Nivola is a revelation as the broken-down Martin.

I Want You is one of the most striking and evocative works of the last decade. An example of British cinema pushed beyond the realms of kitchen-sink and ably demonstrating a sense of visual imagination rare for this kind of genre. The video transfer found on the Polygram distribution release is of a high standard, as is the Dolby encoded soundtrack... but there’s no wide-screen. This means that many of Winterbottom’s carefully composed images are lost and distorted, which for a film of this nature is a real disappointment. Regardless, this is an exception film for those who enjoy their thrillers with a dark underlining and a distinctly multi-dimensional edge. The only question that remains unanswered is... when can we get this on DVD?

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Rating: - Seduction and Gloom
The story is about the passionate affair of a hairdresser and her ex lover who is just released from prison. The use of the camera is awesome, it gets you involved in the film pretty easily. The technical crew also is the squad behind kieslowski, so you would probably imagine the general perception of the movie. The caracthers need a little thinking over, because they are sort of complex. Music is employed quite effectively throughout the movie, and this when combined with the camera usage expertise and the peculiar caracthers, I Want You becomes a highly invoving film. More involving of course if you find Rachel Weisz quite attractive.