REVOLUTIONARY ROAD

Kate Winslet. Kaaaaaate Winslet. You are who you are, and I have to say, I'm impressed. The fact that you can star in movie after movie feigning forceful intercourse with multiple men at the call of, "Action," and never hesitate...that's impressive. Clearly, you took a lesson from Halle Berry; you know where the money is. It's all in the "oh" face.

I hope you're not insulted, Kate--I don't mean to insult you. But your movies...I'm just starting to notice they're starting to be identical! They always feature you having sex and being wrapped in a plot of weird! LITTLE CHILDREN. THE READER. And now REVOLUTIONARY ROAD--with your husband watching. That's kinky. Yet oh so Hollywood.

Across the States grown up boys and girls have rejoiced to hear about REVOLUTIONARY ROAD, which stars both the beddable Ms. Winslet and her TITANIC co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio. Finally, Kate and Leo are together again; finally Jack and Rose can fly! Well, people, know this before you go see this: REVOLUTIONARY ROAD IS NOT TITANIC. Kate and Leo have grown up, and they act in Serious Movies now. No more melodramatic soap operas smothered in historical context. They're on the hunt for statues, not tween fan clubs. And for that, there's no better movie to showcase their determination than REVOLUTIONARY ROAD. Though I should say...it is, in fact, a melodramatic soap opera smothered in historical context.

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD is all about being smothered in historical context. It's about the pitfalls of mid-20th century, upper-middle class, middle American suburbia smothering the life out of every married couple it touched. It's a striking film that's a little hard to understand--do we pity the couple? do we hate Leo? do we hate Kate? do we hate Sam Mendes?--but its darkness is obscenely attractive. A few rare moments within this film unfold almost as from another movie, like a thriller or horror film. The music escalates, the camera does not waver...and I fear that someone wearing the Scream mask will pop out of a closet. It's deliciously dark. But it's also as melodramatic as a high school dance.

This movie is highlighted by manic-depressive highs and lows, here a laugh, there a sob. While I give kudos to the director for embedding the darkness, it took me about half the movie to fall in step with his actors. Leo--who looks lusciously virile all movie long, ladies--kept on using the same conversation-filling "hmm?" at the end of his phrases that personified him in BLOOD DIAMOND. I cringed, hearing him "hmm" after "hmm," slowly slip away from winning a Best Actor award. Beyond the relapse of parts past played, however, Leonardo Di-"do me"-oh was amazing when channeling his inner ferocity. I believed him. I believed every tear, scream and cautious smile--but those all came halfway into the movie and onward. So you'll have to hang in and wait for them.

Kate took just as long for me to believe, unfortunately. At the beginning, I felt she was playing her READER self without an accent--a little stark and disconnected from the present. It wasn't until caca hit the fan that she seemed to really come alive. But I usually don't want to watch an actor that only lights up the screen when the world goes dark--that's a one-sided performance. And for that...though I really like Kate Winslet, I don't know if I really felt she owned this part from start to finish.

But perhaps I'm only being harsh because it's Kate and Leo. Jack and Rose. "Put your hands on me," and "Never let go." Perhaps I need to give them a little bit of leeway, since REV ROAD is so different. It was not easy material; it is dark, twisty and complicated. It's hard to watch, and it must have been even harder to act out. "Take the road less traveled," a certain poet once said--even if that means having your husband film you fake an orgasm with your high school boyfriend. Come on, why not?

plot: Couple succumbs to midlife crisis.
thought: They grow up so fast!
in five: 3.5/5

take the road: http://www.revolutionaryroadmovie.com/