Crime and Punishment in Suburbia details
| Format: | 15 DVD |
|---|---|
| Starring: | Marshall Teague, Michael Ironside, Ellen Barkin, Ellen Barkin, Jeffrey Wright, Conchata Ferrell, Vincent Kartheiser, Monica Keena |
| Director: | Rob Schmidt |
| Genres: | Comedy, Drama, Thriller |
| Studio: | PATHE DISTRIBUTION |
| Name | Discs | |
|---|---|---|
Crime and Punishment in Suburbia |
15 Feature |
DVD Information
| Run time: | 1 hour 34 minutes |
|---|---|
| Rental release: | 25 Feb 2002 |
| Main languages: | English |
Write your own review
Most helpful review
Great wee film; highly watchable...
By Clerico (84 reviews) from Dunbar , 27 Jun 2005[Highly rated reviewer]
It's not surprising that the Radio Times critic missed the point of this angry and sharp little piece of 'new' cinema: you need to take this film on its own merits, rather than try to judge it by other standards.
This film isn't aiming for psychological realism; it's not trying to give 'suburban authenticity' and if it's psychological 'genuine insight' you're after, forget it. Try something easier on the eye and brain like 'A River Runs Thru It.'
'Crime and Punishment' is about the inner turmoil which often afflicts middle-class adolescence. Monica Keena's awakening is to the emptiness of her syrupy-sweet relationship with her football-hero boyfriend, and to the spirituality of the guy who has hitherto seemed such a geek.
What makes the film so clever is that it is enormously watchable: it has a post-modern slickness and gimmickry which keep you hooked until the final frame. But even this slickness has a role to play, because we're in suburbia, US-style, where cool and slick override other issues of taste, morality and decency!
Rob Schmidt's direction means that the viewer is compelled to see Monica's angst as somehow justifying her crime. Schmidt maybe owes something to Conrad and his deliberately amoral stance (in Secret Agent, for instance) which works as an ironic technique to force the viewer to make a moral judgment.
I thought this was a great wee film: strong on music and ironic comments from the lyrics, and strong too on visuals, with lots of clever motifs like the fire and blood; even the heavy hints of Christ worked for me, and Monica's ultimate decision in the closing scene fits with the whole picture Schmidt has created: here is a girl with an inner emptiness, someone who will actually grab hold of anything that might meet her need. She is clutching at straws, but we're invited to believe that she struck lucky...
This is a film to make you think - but it's neither serious nor dull in the way that thought-provoking films can be. It creates a mood and a style which serve as a superb backdrop to what is essentially a drama.
My only query? Why is this film categorised as a 'comedy'?- Was this review helpful to you?
- (3) Yes |
- No (0)
All reviews
(3)Worth watching: gets better as it goes along
By a customer from Durham , 14 Aug 2010Starts off appearing like just a stereotypical American High school film, the power and tension build though.
Maybe does not quite live up to Doestoevsky's original, but still profound in its own way in the end- Was this review helpful to you?
- (0) Yes |
- No (0)
Disappointing dark teen flick
By Steven West from Norfolk, England , 12 Feb 2006This attempt at updating Dosteovsky for Generation X had potential but flounders in a drab muddle of miscast actors and unconvincing plot developments. Vincent Kartheiser, the drippy son of David Boreanaz in TV's ANGEL, is just as weak here, and the characters are uniformly unsympathetic. Only redeeming feature is the opportunity to watch Monica Keena, whose obviously efficient push-up bra gives the best performance.- Was this review helpful to you?
- (0) Yes |
- No (0)
Great wee film; highly watchable...
By Clerico (84 reviews) from Dunbar , 27 Jun 2005It's not surprising that the Radio Times critic missed the point of this angry and sharp little piece of 'new' cinema: you need to take this film on its own merits, rather than try to judge it by other standards.
This film isn't aiming for psychological realism; it's not trying to give 'suburban authenticity' and if it's psychological 'genuine insight' you're after, forget it. Try something easier on the eye and brain like 'A River Runs Thru It.'
'Crime and Punishment' is about the inner turmoil which often afflicts middle-class adolescence. Monica Keena's awakening is to the emptiness of her syrupy-sweet relationship with her football-hero boyfriend, and to the spirituality of the guy who has hitherto seemed such a geek.
What makes the film so clever is that it is enormously watchable: it has a post-modern slickness and gimmickry which keep you hooked until the final frame. But even this slickness has a role to play, because we're in suburbia, US-style, where cool and slick override other issues of taste, morality and decency!
Rob Schmidt's direction means that the viewer is compelled to see Monica's angst as somehow justifying her crime. Schmidt maybe owes something to Conrad and his deliberately amoral stance (in Secret Agent, for instance) which works as an ironic technique to force the viewer to make a moral judgment.
I thought this was a great wee film: strong on music and ironic comments from the lyrics, and strong too on visuals, with lots of clever motifs like the fire and blood; even the heavy hints of Christ worked for me, and Monica's ultimate decision in the closing scene fits with the whole picture Schmidt has created: here is a girl with an inner emptiness, someone who will actually grab hold of anything that might meet her need. She is clutching at straws, but we're invited to believe that she struck lucky...
This is a film to make you think - but it's neither serious nor dull in the way that thought-provoking films can be. It creates a mood and a style which serve as a superb backdrop to what is essentially a drama.
My only query? Why is this film categorised as a 'comedy'?- Was this review helpful to you?
- (3) Yes |
- No (0)
- < Prev
- 1
- Next >
