Film: Claire Dolan
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posted by lljudge @ 8:05 AM
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This film competes with GUY for me for most uncomfortable D'Onofrio film to watch. To say it's bleak is a bit of an understatement. But as painful as it is to watch, it's full of extraordinary performances. Mr. D'Onofrio gives such a raw, open performance that, like his work in GUY, I worried about his mental health.
Hmm... I'm sure I saw this movie somewhere before, but couldn't recall that Mr. VDO was in it. I first saw him in THE CELL and THUMBSUCKER. Before I comment into anything, allow me to see it again.
Cheers, Mr. VDO! Kigurou Teiku(means Take Care)
Thank you for the post, Blog Owner! You are the mujou (means BEST)
**Not to be tooooo lazy, I've cut and pasted my recent comments from another thread wherein there was a quick thought-share with firefligh around whether it was good or bad for the title character to have met Elton**
"With Claire Dolan, I thought that meeting and knowing Elton helped move her toward claiming a bit more of the feeling of wholeness that her mom's death forced her to want to experience -Now. In the end, though, his acting out his crisis of faith in her, I think, pushed her into realizing that she wasn't really going to establish that level of centeredness and connection with her own humanity through relation to someone else; or at least not anyone who was at all aware of her soon-to-be past. I think she determined that her only hope for moving past a life of objectification was through her own work; something that she seemed to kind of know all along anyway. Whether that determination ultimately pushes her to remain isolated was left open; but, the fact that she was due to have a child gives some hope that she'll be able to strike a balance between self-sufficiency and interrelatedness at some point. You're left wondering, though, by her dining alone, if she might be pinning too much hope of becoming a whole person on the birth of her child, keeping others at bay while waiting for this fuller life to just kind of happen to her. But then, this is just my take - in 2,000 words!"
I would need to watch it again to meaningfully comment. However, briefly, like wardicus, as soon as I finished watching the film I likened Elton to Guy... both weak characters who are swept along by manipulative women and couldn't or wouldn't firmly enough say "NO" It is a story of exploitation each one by the other.
I found it powerful and thought provoking as I'm sure Lodge Kerrigan intended it to be.
I felt everyone's performance, without exception, was excellent. The story was meant to be harrowing and uncomfortable; an insight into a seedy world. If we were meant to hate Colm Meaney's character, it worked for me.
Please correct me if I am wrong, but did I hear somewhere that vdo did not particularly want to do this film.
It is with such sadness that Katrin Cartlidge died shortly after at such a young age.
Has vdo ever commented on his role or the movie in general?
Claire Dolan was the first movie I saw of Mr. D'Onofrio's besides L&O CI and Men in Black. I was absolutely blown away by the taxi robbery scene. I knew then that this was an extraodinary actor that I wanted to see more of. The number of emotions that flash across his face after the gunman leaves are imprinted on my mind.
This was a dark movie with an actress that had a very flat affect. I could never get into her as a character. When did he do this movie..before or after his second divorce. I have often wondered how much pressures at home affected the parts he chose. Don't know that we will ever know the answer to that.
Nila
to ANN
Was she (Katrin Cartlidge) Mr. VDO's leading lady in Claire Dolan?
TWWW is my favorite VDO film, but "Eltom Garrett" is my favorite VDO character, so I will be chiming in a lot on this one. :)
This is the one film that I have seen in my entire life in which a scene moved me so much that I had to stop watching and return to it later, and that is the taxicab scene in which Elton understands that he is most likely about to die.
Watching D'Onofrio's face you will swear his character is watching his life pass before his eyes, only not in the relatively long sense of someone drowning, but in a few seconds of intense recognition that this is the end.
I don't know where he found that expression, which is some unearthly combination of fear, regret, and dying hope, but I have seen countless movie deaths and near deaths and no one has demonstrated with such understanding the complexity of emotion, yet with suitable subtlety. There is not a hint of 'overacting' it, and such scenes are almost always overkilled.
If anyone can watch that scene without catching his/her breath sharply, feeling clenched fist tension in the stomach, or even bursting into tears..tell me who it is. I have been trying to watch it again for weeks now, but have not been able to do so...it is that moving. I am not a viewer easily affected, but that 'look' was too close to home...to the fear we all have of dying.
With all the superficial divisions we draw between people - rich or poor, young or old, male or female - there is only one distinction that truely matters and that is between the living and the dead. In those few seconds in this film, that realization both engulfs Garrett and transcends him...and his 'escape' floods him with a sense of relief that only a near death experience can provide.
I also think Vincent had a spriritual type beauty in this film that far superceded the inarticulate nature of the character. This was not a character who easily expressed what he felt or thought - I think it was paramount that his face illuminate his emotions - and Vincent did it so beautifully, with no
recourse to exaggeration.
Of all VDO's films, with all their exceptional moments, there are two facial expressions I can't help but marvel at. One is near the end of "Household Saints" when Vincent's character sits on the edge of his daughter's bed while listening to her relate that she played cards with Jesus, God the Father, and Saint Theresa..that profound look of sorrowful love is heartbreaking. And the taxicab scene im Clair Dolan is even more exceptional for that facial expression...such a memorable 'look' of imminent doom and redemption.
Where does he find such understanding, and how does he recreate it?
I saw some comments of Mr. D'Onofrio (of course I can't remember where right now) that he was looking forward to working with Katrin Cartlidge and Lodge Kerrigan but the experience wasn't what he had hoped. I believe he got along well with Miss Cartlidge, but found Kerrigan hard to connect with. I don't believe Miss Cartlidge was terribly cold; I believe she gave a great performance as a woman who forced herself to be emotionally numb.
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I find the characters' unexamined selves fascinating, yet disturbing. Their outer quietude, monotone speech and self-isolation seem to be a coping mechanism for both Claire and Elton as they struggle with foreign emotions, as if navigating a strange, new land. Sadly, the only human interaction that they seemed to be able to master was sex. All other communications and sentiments left them raw and dangerously unprotected to being hurt by outsiders. There are many instances in this film where Claire and Elton ask each other a question that goes completely ignored by the other. It's as if the question just goes away upon being ignored, much like their untapped emotions. I found it fascinating to interpret their silent "outbursts." Can you imagine trying to act without words, just letting your face do all the talking?
The most powerful scene in the movie was the taxi-mugging scene, where the faceless, hooded passenger terrorizes Elton. Before the mugging, you can sense Elton's silent sense of impending doom as they travel more remotely into a bad neighborhood, "Pay before you get out of the car!" D'Onofrio's range of emotion and expression before and during the mugging was astoundingly complex and emotive. I was astonished with this portrayal, from the fury to the terror to the whimper of recognition that he is still alive, this is VDO at his best.
It pulled on my heartstrings when Claire awkwardly tries to interact with other women, such as when she tells the startled woman at the newsstand, "I just buried my mother." Her other regretful attempt in connecting with another woman and her baby at the park was painful and somewhat creepy. Claire's fumbling attempts to connect with someone, who won't want her for sex, crash and burn at every turn. She repeatedly waits for someone, anyone, to "save" her. Her only perceived salvation is to hone in on men who will want her and hold her, desperately grasping to escape her pain, even if only briefly. After all her repeated failures with other humans, she seems to bleakly settle on having a baby to love her and never leave her.
Thinking before typing................................................................
Oh... my alarm just went off. "THE GOOD CHILD" on LOCI is on TV now. The last 12 episodes of 22 I've missed. I'm sure this one's better than the rest!
I wish that Season 5 will be aired on USA too.
I'll catch you up later! Have a great evening, everyone!
P.S.
Nice hair on "CLAIRE DOLAN", mr. vdo! (^_^)
When someone first suggested this movie to me, they were quick to point out the sex scenes, which turned out to be not at all what this film was about. First of all, when I watch the film now, I try not to think of the fact that Katrin Cartlidge is gone, for how sad to lose someone so young. This is indeed a movie about two very lonely people. The two scenes which moved me the most were the scene where Claire just buries her mother, just her and a priest, and then meets a stranger on a street and feels the need to tell them that she just buried her mother, for she has no one else to share this with. And of course, the second scene is the taxicab scene so movingly played by Vincent. It is so real you do wonder how he can accomplish such realism. It reminds me also of his portrayal in "The Subway" and the last scene when he realizes that his body is not reacting to the trauma the way it did before and that this is death coming. Again just beautifully portrayed. At the end of the movie, I don't think he has any contact with Claire at all. I think he has put her and the baby in the past and has moved on with a wife and baby. And you just wonder how Claire is alone with her baby and somehow you just know she is fine because she will survive all. A very sad and moving film but one to be appreciated for more certainly than the sex scenes. And by the way, I would say that the sexiest scene in the movie is the dance scene. A great feeling of passion displayed by two lonely people dancing. Also I think what we learn about the harshness of Colin Meaney's character is when he throws the cat out the window. Says it all there.
firefligh: I would love to watch it again, but may not be till the weekend as I am hardly at home and I am planning my next mrsbg story.
keiko: yes
Firefligh says it beautifully above in discussing Vincent's portrayal during the taxi robbery -- this is one of the most powerfully moving scenes I've ever witnessed. Objectively, it's like watching an acting master class, as the shades of various expressions cross Vincent's face in a few seconds, each one conveying a powerful emotion that subjectively reaches the core of the viewer. This scene stands out among the bleak landscape of the film and the stifled emotions of Claire, and for me shows VDO's incredible range and sensitivity better than any other scene.
I rented the DVD recently, not knowing anything about it. The beauty of DVDs are the extras. The Introduction by Kent Jones is enlightening and reflects some of the comments previously posted.
Duh. I had completely missed that she had hauled off to Chicago - I must have been swept up by something that happened previously. :) That puts the kibosh on my original take that his weakness would do her in..I thought she was having the baby on Newark and that the final scene showing him with his wife concurrent with Claire's pregnancy.
So okay Ann, you have me that she was out for that baby from him, and not much else. I don't think tho, that life is going to be a bed of roses for her..the scenes showing her difficulty in finding work seem predictive, and if you can believe the cliche, the 'ease' of big bucks in the old line of work makes a 9-5 kinda problematical for 'ex'-prostitutes.
Chamberdawn, hey buddy! Loved your post! I didn't notice a lot of talking over one another's questions...there was a scene - he had tracked her down to her apartment that he asked a question about why she was standing in front of the window, I think, (did that director have a glass fetish, or what?)and she came back with how did you find me..but I didn't see a whole lot of questions left unanswered.
I saw a whole lot more of things left unsaid, and a remarkable absence of joy. Not one laugh, joke, example of even wry humour...their lovemaking was obviously pleasurable but joyless, bereft of delight. I wouldn't expect a prostitute to giggle like a schoolgirl, especially under her circumstances, but their had to be some relief of her psychological burden that came with her affair with Elton. You'd never know it, tho. She may have lost the capacity for joy, but had he suffered that loss as well?
Regina, imho, less is more with sex scenes, and altho his kissing was, well, supernatural, I agree the dance scene was far sexier than the lovemaking. Funny how many films (and even CI epis) Vincent has danced in, and he obviously loves to dance. I love the way she held his shoulders and the long stray curl that fell down the exact middle of the nape of his neck. THAT was erotic.
Now that I've watched it minus my first run hysteria over the cab scene (did that backseat mugger's voice sound familiar? I could swear he was a perp on CI)..I have a few questions.
1) Claire had to have known from the detailed questions Cain asked about her mother, that he knew the mom was dead. Why did she persist in lying to him? Because she may have been forced into a 'business partnership" with him, but refused to 'give' him anything else, including her grief? And is this why she refused the money he offered to her after she had paid him off? The unwillingness to 'share' with or 'take' anything from him?
2) How brutal was Cain relative to conventional portrayals of pimps? His callous toss of the cat out the window well illustrated his sudden cruelty, but were there mitigating acts that hinted his basic philosophy was much more humame? I felt he separated those 'in the life' from those apart from it, and as emasculating as his treatment of Garrett was, there was nothing 'personal' in it. When he followed his viciousness with the 'you're not a boy anymore" was it just heaping insult upon injury, or a more decent impulse in him?
3) Cartlidge, imo, was fascinating (what a loss!)...she had a beauty that just crept up on you. Like the Mona Lisa, she was more beautiful the more you looked at her..her litheness, that elegant neck...but how credible was her depiction of Claire? I am thinking specifically of the monotone she used when she told her clients various untruths...hard to believe with that delivery, they could even pretend to believe it. (Or does that part of the equation even matter?) Without getting overly graphic, did her portrayal ring true?
PS I found the taxicab scene just as traumatic this time around, and even more so the display of relief. But at least this time I could follow the rest of the film :)
PPS The prostitutes of course heaped lie after lie upon their clients, but did anyone believe the gal Garrett went to when "investigating" Claire's profession when she said, "you have a beautiful face?" Is it just me or was his sloe-eyed, touseled haired, soft-voiced character just immensely sensual?
This is one of only a few movies of Vincent's that I have NOT seen. It hasn't been released in Oz. Why do we have to wait sooooo long?? I could buy it from another region but am not certain it would work on my player. Can't wait to see this film released in Australia. Anyone listening?
The taxi scene is indeed a classic, and the cat drop says it all about Colm's character (or lack of it). But Naydi, how did you mean that Elton "acted out his crisis of faith"?
May I suggest another excellent Katrin Cartlidge movie: "The Breaking of Waves."
P.S. I also loved vdo's lush curls in "claire dolan."
sep - I'm referring to their last time in bed together, where their lovemaking is turned into a form of assault in which elton seems determined to make her feel something, anything at all from him, even if it's only physical pain. Leading up to that night that when he found her new hotel room, elton is pretty much kicked as low as one person should ever have to be in a short period of time. He had lived through the taxi robbery, had gone through the exchange showing his tenuous -at best- connection with his daughter and his lack of answers of how to make it stronger, has had claire 'disappear' but has found her and seen that she's still whoring herself out for money even after his gift, and then has his attempt at gaining some form of control over at least something in his life destroyed in the emasculating turn of events during the confrontation of colm meaney's pimp. Not only is he brought down physically during this confrontation, he is also torn down emotionally by the pimp's claim of knowing claire since she was a child and his statement that she's always been a whore and always will be. After all of this, Elton was a pretty decimated man with no sense of power remaining beyond the ability to display -or try to display- some form of sexual control over Claire; which was the worst possible thing he could have done.
I guess my comment of his having a crisis of faith in her wasn't completely accurate in what I was trying to put across. I would better describe it as a crisis of faith in her, himself, in everything.
You know, thinking about the film, has made me want to see it again - it went back into the Netflix queue yesterday. Think it'll go on the 'films to buy' list...
Hey folks, I am going to argue that Colm Meany's "Cain" was far more complicated for us to allow the cat drop to define the character. Yeah, the ability to do such a thing, and to do it so darn casually spells psychopath in capital letters. But was there evidence of a less amoral nature anywhere in the film?
I think he was a 'businessman' first and foremost but could draw a clear distinction between 'family life' and his 'work'. He was clearly convinced Claire would never leave the business for good, claiming she was 'born a whore, and would die a whore". I don't particularly agree with his nature over nuture philosophy, but I also bow to his superior knowledge of the prostitute's basic temperment. His area of expertise is knowing which woman has the 'tendency'. Which does it out of financial need, and which is motivated by something additional to money.
When he tried to give Claire the 'gift' of money near the end, I thought he was just trying to suck her in again, make her dependent once more...accept the money, then feel grateful or comfortable enough to ask him for another loan if she needed it in the future. He was setting her up for dependence again.
On the other hand, he didn't try to connive her, force her, or manipulate her into continuing to work for him after her debt was paid off. And perhaps he genuinely was able to accept her going her own way, and wanted to give her something as a sign or respect for her paying off her debt.
I saw him as a person who operates within his own set of (for lack of a better word) 'ethics'. His enterprise was both criminal and immoral, but there apparently was a code operating, and lying was crossing it. He seemed to want honesty from Claire as much as the money.
Too bad for the cat, tho, that feline life didn't figure too highly in his value system. :)
Anyway, his interaction with Garrett was enough for me to see him as pretty complicated..he was clearly protecting his 'investment' in Claire, but also seemed to be warning Elton that getting hooked up with a hooker was not something someone living a 'straight' life should do.
PS I haven't seen the CI epi yet that Meany did as a guest star. Was he good?
Though Cain was married with four children, I hate to describe his occupation as a business man, though I guess that is what he was. But I thought he was the least likely person in the world to give advice to anyone, be it Claire or Elton. Would it have worked for them, it may have. It seems more than life advice that Cain was determined to have control over Claire's life even after her obligation to him was over. And yes, the one bright spot in this movie certainly was Vincent's appearance-a great look for him.
yeah Regina, advice coming from such a character feels bizarre. But criminals like mobsters and this brand of pimp really do seem to be able to 'successfully' separate out their family and 'business' lives..what that does to their personalites is another story.
I think Cain was sincere (and again, for lack of a better word), not just protecting his investment when he warned Garrett about Claire.
And in the final scene when they met, I think he told the wife that he and Elton had met 'in another life", or something to that regard. She would have taken it in the cliche's sense, but I think there was a double meaning. The two lifestyles - straight and criminal, and altho Cain was able to straddle the two, an innocent like Garrett would not have been.
Finally, on how gorgeous Vincent was in this one..I don't think D'Onofrio is very good looking (ducks bric-a-brac). Of course he's an attractive man but his looks are 'average' enough to allow him to become 'the human chameleon'. His acting, the characters he creates, and the soul he gives them is what makes him fascinating...not the superficial packaging.
But wow, I found his EG character drop dead appealing. He met my definition of a 'beautiful' man...very masculine yet having some features of pure beauty - which is feminine in my mind - the eyes, lips, some gestures.
Some combination of the unkempt but perfect hair and unshaven face brought out the depth of his eyes and his lashes...it increased both the masculinity factor and the sensitivity, because framed in the deliberate scruffiness were these two clouded but curious windows on the world. It was the eyes in this film, and VDO's eyes I have never found 'special'...the character was both very virle and engagingly childlike, and his look pulled it together. It was rather angelic in a regular guy way.
The character itself was too lost and inarticulate to be dynamic, but he was quietly compelling, and you really cared about him. A lot. And then the cab scene so much depended on his facial expressions..the most memorable thing about this film for me that earthy yet spiritual beauty of the character.
Oh, enough drooling. :) But the look was a big key to the character I think.
Of course, I also greatly admire "Pooh-Bear". LOL
This one, and 'Guy' I think are the most uncomfortable of Vincent's to watch. They're awesome, but they don't make for 'cosy' viewing.
'Claire Dolan' is a cold, cold movie with a hot, HOT, Vincent. I wasn't sure whether I was supposed to feel sorry for 'Claire' or not. I guess there's no 'right' or 'wrong' way to feel about a movie though. In the end, I came to the conclusion, her lifestyle had turned her to marble - EXCEPT with Elton in her bed - and in the end (that last scene in bed), he treated her as one of her 'clients' would have, maybe finally convinced she wasn't going to give up her way of life, baby of no. At least she had one hell of a 'stud muffin' - and yes ladies, those curls, especially when he's dancing are just...devine. Oops, sorry, I'm going all 'girlie' on ya ;-)
I picked up the dvs version today..finally coming out of the vhs stone age, but was disappointed with the film commentary..other than the note that the director was trying to frame Kartlidge in early renaissance perspective, and the mention of one of my favorite artists, pretty blah.
I never listen to those things before I've seen a film, for the same reason Diane mentions...there is not one way to feel about a film, and commentaries can have the effect of 'telling you' how to feel.
I felt Claire' life was tragic in a sense that even more traumatic events like war don't result in... depraved experience after depraved experience leading to deliberately flattened affect...but, she hadn't become a monster of callousness. With everything that 'happened' to her, she still hadn't given up trying to control her own life. And she did just that.
The film doesn't leave you with much but your own idea of what will be her fate, and that's a good thing.
Diane, I realized today that I think VD'O is so beautiful in this film because he reminds me so much of how my husband looked when I met him, when we were both students, and before he got preppified by the Ivy League and yupppified by the corporate world. :) That's ok too, I guess, film is supposed to evoke personal memories, and even nostalgia. I'm also grateful the only memory this film recalled for me was something as benign as physical attraction.....many viewers I am sure watch it and recollect more profound or painful memories.
This film, somber as the subject matter was, still contains an element of hope, imo..I don't see anyone's life in it substantially different in years to come, but the miracle is that they even survive.
question...did Cain set up the taxi cab robbery or not, as a 'warning"? I think yes - thugs on their own would have blown Garrett's lovely head off.
I was a bit confused also as to whether or not Cain set up the robbery-but now I am convinced that he did-he needed to demonstrate exactly how much power he did have.
I remember reading comments about this film a few years back, on another D'Onofrio forum, and the majority of the comments making me so angry that I swore of the forum for weeks. That the posts were written so shortly after Katrin's death just kind of added to the sense of self-righteous outrage.
I spent years working phones for escort girls, and still consider several of the 'Ladies' as friends.
While I'm aware that Vincent HATED working on this film - the only person he got along with on the set was Katrin - the film is incredibly accurate when it comes to the attitude of professional escorts, and the men that they meet. So much so that I've lent the film out and have asked for opinions afterwards.
What viewers may read as 'coldness' - to them it's a survival method. It keeps their sanity. These men are not their friends. Most have tangled with men like the character Vincent portrays - and warn their younger peers about them! These men insinuate themselves into their lives - but with strings attached, and heartbreak for both as the outcome. Look at it from that point of view and it's Elton with the issues - he screwed himself. Claire was honest with him - he couldn't deal with it.
I have never judged these women - most of them are very much like the Claire Dolan character: relatively plain, soft spoken, somebody's mother, daughter, sister, friend. They disappear into society, even though society judges them - harshly.
What bugs me about this film is that it could have been so much BETTER. Katrin was one of the best character actors available, we know Vincent will step up, and the director - for better or for worse - had a great indie film under his belt. Claire Dolan should have been an amazing film - WTF happened?
I watched the film for the third time and felt comfortable enough reviewing it on my blog..would like to get your comments.
As to what happened to prevent the film from being 'better'..well, it wasn't crafted for American sensibilities, and from what I understand, the French took to it :)
The opening shots of architectural structures, tho, was so heavy-handed that I can't believe Europeans didn't get a laugh out of it. It was easy enough to 'get' what the director's use of glass, metal, concrete, and wire fences in the film symbolized.
At first I thought the lack of narrative exposition was what prevented the film from being more successful. But now I believe the three main characters were correctly made to communicate as they did..Cain with platitudes, Claire with self-containment, and Garrett with suppressed curiosity. But what dialog there was wasn't top quality writing, imho.
It was by no means a great film..but I think it deserved more attention here in the US than it evidently got.
Can somebody dig up whatever article discusses Vincent not being satisfied, on not liking it, or whatever? Or give me a hint so I can dig it up?
Dear Firefly-
No bric-a-brac coming your way-we all have our own definition of what a good looking man is and unfortunately, Vincent might agree with you-but I don't and especially his eyes-I have always found them to be his best feature not only look wise but in his acting as well.
:) nope Regina, not "very" good looking, just very attractive, and in addition - totally, absolutely and completely fascinating - a much rarer commmodity. :)
I just saw this film (having found it on DVD at a wonderful Toronto video store, Bay Street Video) this weekend.
I found it to be very disturbing (in a thought-provoking way) mainly due to the disaffected nature of the characters played by Mr. D'Onofrio, Ms Cartlidge and Mr. Meaney (in my view, 3 of the finest character actors there are/were - all in one film!). Given the subject matter, I found this to be very realistic and the film (curiously enough, given the subject matter) without judgment.
Someone wrote above:
<...but how credible was her depiction of Claire? I am thinking specifically of the monotone she used when she told her clients various untruths...hard to believe with that delivery, they could even pretend to believe it. (Or does that part of the equation even matter?) Without getting overly graphic, did her portrayal ring true?>
To me, it rang very true. I have worked in the sex trade in past (as an exotic dancer primarily) and I guess for me part of the distubing element of the movie is how closely Ms. Cartlidge's portrayal mirrored my own ambivalence about my engagement in that work.
As a generalization, while working in that trade I found it very rare that clients actually listened to what one was saying to them as long as it *sounded* right. Near the end of my stint, when approaching burnout, I started to experiment with this... reciting the grocery list in a sexy voice, for example. Amazing how little it mattered.
I also found her interactions with Mr. D'Onofrio evocative of the frustration that a partner can have about their loved one being involved in this field.
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