BRUTAL
ARDOR "Painfully depressing" "perverse"
but "effective and memorable" story of a neurotic
abuse wife, the "compellingly real" Harriet Hendlin,
"suitably oppressed and anemic," who spirals downward
until she stabs and kills her husband, "nail-bitingly realistic"
Eugene Kallman. "A lot darker and twisted and realistic
than you typical network-TV movie on the same subject wound
be. Full of guilt, hate, self-loathing, torment, depression-
no escape." "A serious, atmospheric film that draws
you into the mind of an abused wife, revealing the brutality
and cruelty of an abuse situation without being overtly violent."
"An ultra-realistic film that five a documentary impression.
You can almost 'feel' the loneliness, hopelessness, fear , guilt,
and overwhelming depression." "Hendlin's low-key performance
is so real it make you feel like a peeping Tom. A chilling portrait
of a sick, symbiotic relationship. One of those rare films that
leaves one with a brutal, indelible image-memory without ever
actually showing the violence. The off-screen violence is wordless
and chilling- like an animal yelping." "Feminist propaganda.
The 'feminist' part doesn't bother me, it's the 'propaganda'
part."
"Director
Michael DiPaolo has a particularly good touch in the beating
scenes. All the violence is off-camera, while the camera focuses
on the dark living room." "Unsettling, effective religious
chanting in the background." "Although it's on video,
it's beautifully shot." "A depressing, claustrophobic
film. DiPaolo tries to be quite arty, but more frequently he
detracts from what is a very human story." "A stuffy
shirt kind of film. Way too much true-life feel and not enough
real entertainment value." One dead body. Writer: Y York
("good, especially the narration"). Joe
Bob Report © 1994 Joe Bob Briggs
Brutal
Ardor Reviews