![]() ![]() But does Trengove want us to be terrified by him or pity him for his susceptibility to an extreme ideology that tips this already damaged Alpha Male manqué over the edge, transforming him into a violent sociopath? Maybe both. None of that makes Ralphie pleasant company to spend an hour-and-a-half with, although watching Eisenberg - mildly buffed up and sporting flame-red hair - trade his usual neurotic tics for a more bruising intensity is never uninteresting. Abandonment issues seeded by his father’s early exit from his life are another source of unresolved angst. The furious scorn he directs at an amorous gay couple he picks up on his Uber shift makes it clearer that repressed sexuality and internalized homophobia are part of his toxic cocktail of psychological instability. His inner turbulence is especially palpable at the gym, where his intense scrutiny of a Black Adonis named Ahmet (Sallieu Sesay) sends mixed signals. When anyone expresses sympathy for his job loss, financial woes and the looming responsibilities of becoming a parent, he lapses into the flimsiest impersonation of self-confidence: “I’m just taking time to stay focused and centered trying to keep my options open.” But Ralphie seemingly has no options he’s like a Fight Club refugee without the physical catharsis. Showing vulnerability is anathema to him. In the post-workout selfies he takes, or when admiring himself in the images on a bank of televisions in an electronics store, we see the narcissist desperate for his own approval. ![]() Young makes the most of a character increasingly looking at her partner and discovering, with growing alarm, that she doesn’t know him at all.Įven the prospect of fatherhood appears to be something Ralphie - who wanted the child more than Sal did - approaches as another means to pump up his fragile masculinity, much like his strenuous body-building sessions at the gym. Venue: Berlin Film Festival (Competition)Ĭast: Jesse Eisenberg, Adrien Brody, Odessa Young, Philip Ettinger, Sallieu Sesay Barely scraping by financially and staring ahead at an unpromising future, the damaged Ralphie reaches for a lifeline with a shadowy cult of male separatists, which only makes his hold on reality unravel faster. The protagonist of the South African writer-director’s first English-language feature, Manodrome - played by a febrile Jesse Eisenberg in an eye-opening performance simmering with rage - is already fully inducted into the uneasy halls of manhood and finding it an uncomfortable fit. ![]() John Trengove’s searing 2017 debut, The Wound, explored the complex world of Xhosa masculinity via adolescent initiation rites that exposed thorny conflicts of sexuality and personal identity. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |