Phantom Menace (Ghostwriter (DVD))

Member Name: plipplop

Product:	Ghostwriter (DVD)
Date:	29/12/08 (220 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cumming's performance, the general curiosity of it all

Disadvantages: It's a bit pointless

This is a review of a film that was originally titled Suffering Man's Charity but was released under the name Ghost Writer for the region 2 DVD release.

John Vandermark is a lonely, highly-strung music teacher with a fondness for fit young men and a loathing for his talentless students. Living in a sprawling Los Angeles mansion, Vandermark has a tendency to take in helpless lodgers, and Sebastian St Germain, a good-looking young writer, is just the latest in a long line. Increasingly frustrated by Sebastian's lack of respect for his home and inability to pay his way, Vandermark is confronted late one night by Sebastian and his latest conquest. Furious at the young man's behaviour, the two men start to fight - with devastating consequences....

Ghost Writer is one of those curious little movies that you would almost certainly never find unless you read a review or saw the trailer. Essentially a dialogue between Vandermark and St Germain, the tale could hardly be described as the most exciting thing you will ever see, but there is a wicked little charm here that has at least some appeal.

The film feels rather at odds with itself, like a square peg forced into a round hole. As the plot slowly unfolds, it all feels more like a theatre production than a movie. There are only a handful of different sets, with most of the film's action taking place within one or two rooms in Vandermark's mansion. The dialogue between the two leads is protracted in the extreme, with most of the film involving just the two of them facing off against each other. Most notably, however, is the way in which the lead character, John Vandermark, dominates the proceedings. Ghost Writer is, without a doubt, a showcase for the talents of Alan Cumming, the director and lead actor. It's hard not to imagine that there's more than just a little of Cummings' real personality coming through here, the idea that he might be a hysterical, venomous old queen not as much a stretch of the imagination as it could be.

The film's identity crisis doesn't end there. Billed as both a comedy and a horror, the film never really becomes one or the other. There are one or two slightly bloody moments (one, notably, is rather silly and over-the-top) and a sprinkling of funny bits, but it's hard for the audience to decide whether to be amused or unsettled. The plot really relies on the fact that you might find Vandermark curious and eccentric and that you might be a even more curious to find out what is to happen between him and his younger, fitter co-star (David Boreanaz from Buffy and Angel). Certainly, a glimpse of Boreanaz in a very small pair of pink ladies' panties and nothing else is a curious and strangely alluring part of the trailer's appeal.

The trouble is, it quickly grows rather tiresome. Vandermark is so obnoxious and, frankly, so over-the-top that he rapidly switches from being a character to a caricature and it becomes difficult to maintain any kind of real interest in what happens to him. Although the plot twists enough to prevent it from being predictable, it is very slow and you can't help thinking that something rather more exciting could have been put together. The film's action draws rapidly to a close too, almost too rapidly to feel as though it has been carefully constructed and instead, as the final credits roll, you end up feeling as though the writer got bored and brought it to an abrupt end. Most viewers would probably consider Ghost Writer to be a dark thriller and it is highly comparable at times to the old Tales of the Unexpected series that used to be screened on terrestrial television. Indeed, were the film to be condensed into a shorter running time, the scope would almost definitely feel more at home as a short, television film, than a full-scale movie.

Alan Cumming is, it must be said, extremely convincing, though his skills as a director remain rather untested. There is no directing flair here, with a fairly conventional approach to filmmaking that further adds to the confines of the subject matter. The creation of John Vandermark, however, is an inspired addition to Cumming's CV and the conviction with which Cumming plays the part is certainly enough to engage the audience. An entirely unpleasant (and yet also pathetic) individual, it's hard to have sympathy for Vandermark and this never really seems to be Cumming's intention. His co-star, David Boreanaz is a curious choice, apparently selected more for his youthful good looks than his acting prowess. In fairness, I thought he was rather better than I was expecting him to be, although the weakness of his character seems out of sorts with the physical superiority that he has over Vandermark. Towards the end, the film shifts slightly in tone and takes a bit of a turn that doesn't work as well as some of the earlier narrative, with Boreanaz in particular struggling to work with the new direction.

It's hard to imagine that this would appeal to a wide cross-section of viewers. For me, there was a certain curiosity about the piece that kept me interested until the end but it 's hard to escape the slow pace and drawn-out dialogue that makes the modest running time feel much longer than it is. This is worth a look for Cumming's performance (and Boreanaz's appearance in ladies' underwear) but it's certainly not something worth rushing out and buying.

Curiously, the region 2 DVD is in stock at www.play.com and currently costs £5.99. It's a penny less at www.amazon.co.uk but is listed as not being released until December 29th. I rented the film through www.lovefilm.com mid-December and that's my recommended viewing option.

Summary: A lonely, embittered old queen gets into a spot of bother