Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Stoker (2013)

I've watched Stoker, Shame and Prozac Nation which all were psychological themed films the past month. Things have been tied up as I've been interning at a govie treasury office in my hometown. Then I thought that the theme suits perfectly with my current life. Well it doesn't mean I have the exact same psychological problems but I can tell we share the same fundamental value. We're most definitely bored.

Stoker (2013)
IMDb Rating: 7.0/10
Director: Chan-wook Park
Writer: Wentworth Miller, Erin Cressida Wilson
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode, Dermot Mulroney

Sets in nowadays, a coming-of-age India Stoker (Mia Wasikowska) has to deal a tragic loss of her father, Richard Stoker (Dermot Mulroney) and a sudden visit of her long lost uncle, Charles Stoker (Matthew Goode). India starts smells some funny business between her mother, Evelyn Stoker (Nicole Kidman) and Charlie after seeing their frequent affection and intimacy around the house. Something mysterious is hidden inside his uncle's mind, she knows it's bad. Though Charlie keeps trying to get to know her better by cooking a dinner for India and her mother, picking her up at school, saving her lives after getting bullied and nearly raped by her school mate. But still, India has to find out a mystery behind Charlie's appearance in the family. The mystery that will change her forever. And all it takes, is the key she got from her 19th birthday present from her dead father.

Le Review

Getting bored is a dangerous state to every beings in life. It'll trick your mind to do something else, something different than you usually do. Something that pleases you. An escape from a routine, a reality. If we talk about sane people, they'll probably take a day off, go for a vacation, cherish life a little bit. However, this won't be the options for those who is mentally unstable. I mean not generally, but some of them will do for sure. Common people have boundaries of things they want to do when they get bored, while the sick.. apparently don't share the same idea. It can be worse like killing, raping, vandalizing, and all the batshits.

Talking about Stoker, it is exactly about the ugly causes of getting bored. They get bored, they're sick of having poor expectations. It turns out the other way in real life that things don't happen the way they want it to be. Hence, they will do 'something different' just like us, common people, going on a vacation. But this time... they do 'it' in their very own way. Same thing happens between India and Charlie's relationship, implicitly.

Charlie and India piano duet


This film is dark and puzzling. Creepy but sublime. Just to see Charlie's eyes has given me goosebumps. They look scary and intimidating but preposterously beautiful. Also India's house and outfits seems vintage, you won't realize this film sets in modern day. The horrific classic music and the fairly fast plot.. also roots Stoker's cold atmosphere. Three main actors, Wasikowska, Goode and Kidman performances are well done nicely too. Such great approach by Chan-wook Park, the director, who is also the director of Oldboy (2003). (A korean film, same psychological theme just like Stoker, but a lot more puzzling and the most mindfuck film ever seen. You should watch it too.)

I recommend Stoker if you want a mindblowing puzzled film with a twist ending.
Final verdict: 8/10