Deep, dark, gloomy and, dare we say, penetrating. That’s the feeling you get from the very beginning of the new thriller, “Shame.”
If you missed seeing the Irish born actor Michael Fassbender in “X-Men: First Class,” “Jane Eyre,” “Hunger,” or this season’s “A Dangerous Method,” you’ll never forget him as Brandon in the Steve McQueen directed “Shame.”
We first meet the handsome, brooding Brandon in bed at his New York apartment and within less than a minute, see him full-frontal– and then furiously masturbating in his bathroom and then in the men’s room in his office, where he also accesses porn on the company computer.
His exact occupation is left somewhat of a mystery – he may work at an advertising agency– but one thing is quite clear. He’s a sex addict who has difficulty connecting with himself or with other people as human beings. A soulless Manhattanite who needs the release of sex multiple times a day, whether it’s by himself, with a pickup at a bar or a prostitute.
Despite his uncontrollable urges and his lack of introspection about them, Brandon has his routines down pat. We see him showering in the morning, repeatedly listening to a phone message from what sounds like a desperate ex-flame that he’s blown off, commuting to work on the subway–where he often flashes back to his sexual gratification and gives the eye to attractive women. Then, his day involves dealing with his workload and his boss, played by a schlumpy (as we’ve never seen him) James Badge Dale– who’s more of a bar buddy wanting in on some of Brandon’s action.
And then there’s the joyless sex– on the street, in his apartment, or in the window of the Standard Hotel in full view of the street below. It’s not identified, but that’s where a lot of the action takes place.
As they used to say about “Sex and the City,” New York City is a character in this film and its aficionados will enjoy figuring out other sites where scenes were filmed.
All may be fine and good, as it apparently has been for years, until a big complication arrives at Brandon’s doorstep in the form of his sister, Sissy, in a stunning performance by Carey Mulligan. She is as emotionally open and needy as he is contained, demanding that she stay with him, where she proceeds to press all of his buttons in the wrong way, including walking in on a masturbation session.
It’s when Sissy– a nightclub singer with her own deeply felt emotional issues– takes up with the married boss that things get really out of control and start to spiral downward for Brandon, who already perceives the walls closing in.
Meanwhile, he’s trying to start an actual dating relationship with a coworker played by Nicole Beharie. They start off on an awkward dinner date and, well, we’re not going to spoil what happens.
The whole time, with shades of “American Psycho,” you’re wondering what Brandon is going to do next. Rape, murder? Assault? The journey involves a gay sex club, some seedy bars and a threesome– all through the lens of Brandon’s desperation and despair.
Shame, Rated NC-17
Directed by Steve McQueen, written by McQueen and Abi Morgan
Running time: 1:39
