The Paperboy

Today I went to see The Paperboy. It wasn't my choice, but after hearing a couple of good reviews my company had decided that we should go see it, having fancied a change from the traditional churn of Hollywood blockbusters.

I was unaware of the film as I hadn't seen any adverts for it - and it seemed that most people hadn't either (or were choosing to ignore it), for the UK release date was only two weeks ago and already Empire cinema in Leicester square were placing us in their smallest screening room: a virtual attic with only 4 rows of seats. After watching the film, we weren't really surprised.

Shot in a cinéma vérité style, the plot of this film noir is as every bit grainy as the camera's picture quality. Based on a 1995 novel by American author Pete Dexter and directed by Lee Daniels, it stars Nicole Kidman as a 'blonde barbie doll', a deadly John Cusack, and Zac Efron and Matthew McConaughey as brothers, all living in a sweltering 1960s Florida. Despite the lack of publicity I'd seen, the film's cast alone should be bound to catch some attention I thought. However it may be the names alone that can hold on to said attention, at least for me, as the film is very slow-paced and it took patience in between the momentary Southern 'charms' and black humour to keep me sustained (not to mention I was unequipped with neither popcorn nor drink). 

Ward Jansen (McConaughey) and his uptight associate Yardley Acheman (David Oyelowo) are newspaper researchers investigating the case of Hillary van Wetter (Cusack), a prisoner on death row for the murder of a local asshole sheriff. From the start I'm not sure why exactly they're helping him, Wetter himself seems like an entirely disagreeable man perfectly capable of the murder, but I guess Acherman and Jansen are just trying to make a name for themselves in the printing press. Kidman plays Wetter's paramore Miss Charlotte Bless, a woman whose girlish manners do nothing to disguise her wild and unashamed sexuality. This is unleashed most fervently in the notable prison-visitation scene, a sort of humorous porno in which the camera boldly dives into Kidman's crotch as Bless aids Wetter and herself live up to his name, whilst neither the idle cast members nor the cinema audience know quite where to look.

I don't wish to give away too many annoying spoilers, so as a general summary the film overall just feels as though it takes place in an incessant pool of slow slime. The tedious and undesirable accumulation of full body sweat, everyday racism, rough sex, misogyny, urination, blood and guts, makes the filthy swamp itself appear as probably the purest aspect of the whole film's landscape. It simply makes you want to take a bath in all things clean, good and wholesome. 

Having dished the dirt though, I would say that Nicole Kidman does give a very sensual and skilled performance of her character which could be worth the watch. As does Macy Gray. The Paperboy also warmly invites its viewers to partake in the sexual objectification of the gorgeous Kidman and bulked-up Zac Efron (whose constant stripping to bare tighty-whites could be confused with a Calvin Klein ad). So there's a positive if you're into that kinda thing..