Sleuth
Wednesday, 21 Nov 2007 11:28
The old man just wanted a cuddle.
Directed by Kenneth Branagh, screenplay by Harold Pinter, out November 17th, starring Jude Law and Michael Caine, running time 90 minutes.
In a nutshell...
Stylish and classy meets clunky and awkward.
What's it all about?
The original Sleuth, coming out in 1972, pitted a young Milo Tindle(Michael Caine) against the fuddy-duddy Andrew Wyke (Laurence Olivier). Revised from the original play by Anthony Shaffer, the pair's macho jousting was made all the more interesting by the ways they interacted – Caine the more subtle performance, Olivier rather more preposterous and blustering. Battling over a woman and jostling for superiority, 2007's remake sees Kenneth Branagh take over the directorial reins and Harold Pinter come up with a new screenplay. Both main characters end up quivering wrecks at different stages of the film – and it is the story which, at first watching at least, proves utterly absorbing for much of the way.
Who's in it?
Jude Law's remakes of old Michael Caine movies are getting to be a habit. First came Alfie, a so-so 2004 effort which got critics head-scratching about the project's point. Now we have Law stepping into Caine's shoes again, but this time he gets to play opposite – of all people – Caine himself. Once glee over the cleverness of the producers has subsided comes the awful realisation that Caine is going to have to fill the shoes of Olivier. Fortunately, he succeeds – as far as the script allows – in a strange, detached way.
As an example...
Wyke: Why have I never heard of you?
Tindle: You will. Before long.
Wyke: Really?
Tindle: In spades.
Wyke: That sounds threatening.
Tindle: Does it?
Wyke: Doesn't it?
Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars
No film is probably more suited to showing off an actor's ability - but such is the nature of Pinter's screenplay that neither Caine nor Law are likely to see recognition from Hollywood for their efforts. More likely for recognition is the cinematography, for the integral role the set plays in establishing the tone of the piece. All the action takes place in a bizarre, tres moderne mansion in grey England. The closed nature of the plot is the best bit of the film, and might – at a push – lead to a nomination here or there.
What the others say
"If you consider what the exalted quartet of Branagh, Pinter, Caine and Law might have done with the project, and what they did to it, Sleuth has to be the worst prestige movie of the year." – Richard Corliss, Time
"Sleuth is well acted, and directed by Branagh with chilly, distant ingenuity. It has a certain edge and daring, or more to the point it pretends to." – Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com
So is it any good?
It depends. This is not a film to be impressed by as a thriller, despite the jump-out-of-the-seat effect of its sparse gunshots. Instead it is dominated by Pinter's clunky dialogue, which is laughably bad and plays well with Law and Caine's occasionally laughably bad acting. The overall effect is a jilting awkwardness which, completely removed from reality, creates a sense of tension. Its consistency is its saving grace – just as the action never varies away from Wyke's country estate, nor does Pinter's dialogue disgress from his strange style.
Sleuth is certainly an excellent remake, thoroughly updating the movie's basic premises to the 21st century. Where Caine's measured performance was in stark contrast to Olivier's more theatrical gestures, the blurred difference between his elderly self and the youthful Law is less clear-cut. This resonates well and provides an interesting, almost inadvertent, cultural commentary on the generational gap. It's enough to hope another remake is made in another 35 years.
Seen for the first time, the movie is sufficiently intriguing. But, despite all the above, it fails to graduate into greater worthiness simply because of a structural problem. The final act completely fails to follow up the promise of the first two, becoming confused and unsatisfactory, despite the final denouement. It's not enough – and ultimately lets what could have been a successful movie down.
5/10
Alex Stevenson
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