(1992)
3.5
Lisa Kropiewnicki
Accomplished French director Louis Malle stays faithful to Josephine Hart's best-selling novel about obsession, deceit, and destruction, but adds the touch of humanity to these difficult subjects characteristic of his earlier works such as Murmur of the Heart (1971) and Pretty Baby (1978). Adapted for the screen by playwright David Hare, the script is a dialogue-sparse and moody psychological exploration of passionate obsession, from the sublime ecstasy of its initial grip to its inevitable tragedy. The gaunt yet elegant Jeremy Irons is adept at portraying Dr. Stephen Fleming, the distinguished, silently suffering government official with a sexual loneliness turned sexual obsession that parallels Irons' roles in M. Butterfly (1993) and Lolita (1997). Juliette Binoche's role as Anna Barton is hauntingly enigmatic and a difficult one; her pain and sadness is expressed through her gaze, her needy gestures, and her tormented silences. Similar in tone, although not as revered, as the classic Last Tango in Paris (1972), the film garnered much criticism for its abstract character motivations. Not for all tastes, this is a deeply complex and disturbing tale of unhappiness that is all too authentic.
Damage on AllMovie
Damage (1992)
