Suddenly
(2002/Empire Pictures/First Run Features)
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C Film: C+
Diego
Lerman’s Suddenly (2002) is a film
that plays and questions expectations throughout as two women kidnap a third,
but it is not a mere crime film. The
victim becomes excited by the alternative to her life, predictably, yet this is
not a torture porn film. The women
travel around, yet it is not a demented road movie. Instead, the film wants to be a character
examination of the women, the place and way they live.
As a
result, the film takes risks and even though they do not always pay off, I give
the film credit for ambition. The film
is also concerned about the lack of empowerment of these women, even when they
are against each other. It has also
rightly been said that this looks like a black and white Jim Jarmusch film,
which works against the film as it can never be a distinctively stark as his
best work. The monochrome seems more
like style than a statement, but when all is said and done, the look at
Argentina and its women is never complete.
It is at least interesting enough to giver it a look.
The
letterboxed 1.85 X 1 image may have some detail and depth problems, but is
surprisingly consistent for latter-day black and white, which lacks the silver
content of the real thing. The Dolby
Digital Spanish 2.0 sound is simple stereo at best, but the actual recording is
not bad. Extras include text director’s
biography, trailers for this and three other Empire releases and stills.
- Nicholas Sheffo
