Safe
|
Our Price: $119.95 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $28.00 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Safe
Movie Review: Safe can be deadly
Summary: 5 Stars
I think this is one of the best and most significant films of the 90s. It is a very introspective film, so if you require shootouts, steamy sex scenes and explosions to remain interested, this is definitely not the movie for you. Even fans of independent films may find their attention spans challenged by the deliberately slow paced and downbeat style of Safe. It is, however, well worth paying attention to. I've seen this movie three times now, and I notice more with each viewing. The opening frame, which puts brackets around the title [Safe] is a study in itself. Carol White (the name, like many details in this film, is quite significant), played by Julianne Moore, is an affluent suburban housewife who apparently becomes allergic to everything around her. Yet Safe, which might first seem like a made-for-television disease-of-the-week affair, has a far more subtle and thought-provoking theme than illness. From the start, we are oppressed by the white, sterile perfection of Carol's environment. The interiors of her house could have been designed by a feng shui consultant. The colors are all soft; everything is arranged in perfect symmetry. When a furniture store accidentally delivers a black rather than teal couch to the house, Carol panics (black=impurity). Carol at first attributes her illness to stress and her doctor concurs. Yet her life is anything but stressful; we see her float from the health club to the hair salon to lunch with a friend at a restaurant. Her symptoms worsen, and she learns about environmental illness; "Are you allergic to the 20th Century?" a flyer asks. As Carol becomes unable to cope with her life, she enters Wrenwood, a new age retreat center that promises to cleanse the body and spirit of impurities. Wrenwood preaches a self-righteous philosophy of asceticism, withdrawl from society and positive thinking. In Safe, director Todd Haynes has taken a profound look at some disconcerting aspects of modern society. What is perhaps best about the film is its nuanced performances. Carol, though ill and upset, is never completely out of control for long; she always returns to her "I'm fine" persona (which is part of her problem). The new age center and its staff, which could have been a parody of silliness or cultishness, is similarly subtle. If you listen to what they preach and the effects it has on patients (everyone is always on the verge of tears), you can see the flaws and distortions, but it's sophisticated and plausible enough that you can also see how people might fall for it. Safe suggests that the desire to escape all forms of impurity may be one of the most pathological things about our culture.Movie Review: About a REAL PHYSICAL ILLNESS-MULTIPLE CHEMICAL SENSITIVITY
Summary: 5 Stars
Although this movie abounds with symbolism about the bloated materialism of Western society, and its effect on desensitizing(in this case sensitizing)people, this is really a finely drawn portrait of the onset of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity(MCS)- a very real illness- brought on by the disconnecting of the body's enzyme systems,loss of detoxification signalling in the brain, damage to DNA, and brain intoxication, from overexposure to the proliferation of common manufactured chemicals, at average levels of exposure, over time. Some of the causitive agents are shown in the movie- magic markers, vehicle exhaust fumes, new houses(with their formaldehyde, glues, paints, carpets, furniture), household cleaners, and fragrances(most colognes contain formaldehyde). Julianne Moore becomes progressively intoxicated(poisoned), as she encounters average manufactured products of the 20th century. This is called the "spreading factor" and often a person becomes more and more debilitated by typical daily exposures to many different common things. MCS is difficult to diagnose. There is no cure for this chronic disabling disease, and the sick person must be isolated and avoid contact with the substances. In dear America, especially out West, there are caravans of MCS sufferers traveling in small groups, trying to be as far from civilization as possible-they are on the edge of life, can only be near porcelain and stainless steel. Doctors, dentists, bus drivers, roofers, nurses, artists,etc......New Mexico declared a state of emergency for help for MCS victims. This is a great movie which shows a life familiar to some. Gulf War veterans validated this illness,(which some doctors still do not understand and pass off as Depression), because thousands returned with MCS acquired from Sarin gas and burning oil fields. Reviewers who think it is about a psychological illness and comparisons to institutionalization- are flat wrong! If you have MCS- I recommend viewing this with family and friends to help educate them about your illness- the bizarre problems of MCS often lead to disbelief and lack of support, because it is not as easy to relate to as Cancer or Diabetes . There is a tremendous proliferation of toxic chemicals in our world, and their effects on living beings have been poorly evaluated. I am an expert on MCS.Movie Review: Anything but safe.
Summary: 5 Stars
Safe - movie, 4 starsNamed by the Village Voice as the Best Film of the 1990s, this resounding social statement a-la-TV-movie-of-the-week is certainly anything but what its title suggests. Director Todd Haynes has the reputation of pushing limits and making audiences strangely uncomfortable, and this film is no exception.
San Fernando Valley, circa 1989. Carol White (Julianne Moore) is living her perfectly stereotypical upper-middle-class life when suddenly she becomes sick. When she has allergic reactions to all sorts of chemicals around her, her husband (Xander Berkeley) and doctor think it's all in her head. However, the hopelessly reserved Carol knows her "environmental illness" is legitimate, uprooting herself and moving into the chemically-sterile community of Wrenwood, New Mexico. There, she is treated for her mysterious illness by self-help guru Peter Dunning (Peter Friedman) and his bright-eyed cohorts; however, her health continues to decline.
The film's statement is quite difficult to detect upon first viewing. Certainly, the plot is extremely reminiscent of many TV-movies of the 80s and 90s, all showcasing a new disease of the week. However, it eventually becomes apparent that the film is not a commentary on environmental illness.
Performances in the film are all at best adequate, with the exception of Moore, who is undeniably brilliant. Her detatched, sad carriage and demeanor arguably echoes more loudly than the film's social statement. Of course, she depends heavily on her subtleties as usual, and when she's onscreen, it's difficult to pay attention to anything else. Her birthday scene, toward the end of the film, is particularly moving.
Haynes's direction is seemingly bland at times-- one may feel as if he's watching a horror movie on Valium. However, Haynes's complexities eventually show through and what we see is a brillantly sincere and deep commentary on a rather provocative question: Is anyone ever really safe?
Movie Review: Unsettling, creepy, BLEAK, perfect!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'll start by saying that Safe is hands downthe absolute BEST film I've ever seen. As has
been mentioned many times in these reviews, this
is THE best performance of Julianne Moore's career
(with Boogie Nights being a close second). This
is also the best film of Todd Haynes' career (does
ANYONE know where to find Superstar: The Karen
Carpenter Story or Dottie Gets Spanked????).
I've waited MANY MANY years for this DVD release,
as I can finally see the glorious framing in
widescreen, and get a bit of insight into the
thought processes behind the film. At first, I
was a bit disappointed by the commentary track,
but then realized that too much information on
MEANING, etc., would ruin the experience of
deciding for oneself if the illness was
environmental or psychosomatic (I tend towards
the latter).
I've seen this film close to 25 times now, and
still have yet to see a more unsettling film
(although Repulsion JUST sqeaks by on the
creepiness factor).
I had to smile at some of the
other comments posted here, namely about "subjecting"
friends to this film to gauge their reactions. And
as for the comment about the truly horrifying scene
in the baby shower....I COULD NOT AGREE MORE! I
thought I was the only one to be severly affected
by this extremely creepy scene. It ranks up there
with a particular scene in Happiness (if you've seen
it, you know which one), and the last shot in Repulsion
in its ability to send shivers up my spine EVERY time
I see it.
Suffice it to say, this is one of those films you
either completely fall in love with (as I and many
here have), or you find as boring and bland as watching
paint dry....Yup, gauging people's reactions to this
film is always fun.
And one last adjective: UNRESOUNDINGLY BLEAK...
Movie Review: environMENTAL ILLNESS...
Summary: 5 Stars
Having lived my early childhood through the loopy 1970s, I suddenly found myself having to be a teenager in the stultifyingly sterile '80s! SAFE captures this dull, self-obsessed decade perfectly. Carol White (Julianne Moore from Hannibal) is a typically rich, near-catatonic house-spouse with a seemingly pristine existence. Carol has everything that we were led to believe is vitally important for happiness. She is completely protected from the urban horrors of the city, living in her mammoth estate, walled off from all lesser reality. Unfortunately, there is no true escape for Carol, as she begins having physical reactions to the white noise that is her life. Carol has environmental sensitivity, a metaphor that captures the alienation, desolation, and ridiculousness of the entire "Me-Me!" generation. Xander Berkeley (Candyman) plays Greg, Carol's frustrated, confused husband. He has all the warmth and understanding of a slab of marble and isn't afraid to show it! Carol gets increasingly worse, sicker, crazier. Greg looks on like a helpess witness of the Hindenberg disaster. Doctors and therapists are useless. Carol finally finds her salvation in a place called Wrenwood, where a cult leader and his followers accept Carol with open arms and wide smiles. Wrenwood allows Carol to spiral down to the absolute bottom. She discovers her total lack of inner lIfe. Her lack of identity. Her interior emptiness. Carol enters the subtle horror of self-affirmation, where she must remind herself that she does actually exist. However, her whole reason for being is now linked forever to her condition. Carol's illness is her identity now. She is the sick one. She is SAFE... P.S.- Watch for the creepy "Lester" character as he lurches along the perifery of the Wrenwood grounds. He's like a zombie-puppet on spider legs! He's probably the most disturbing thing about the movie...