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ivans xtc.
***
Cinema Releases - September 20, 2002
Rated on a 4-star scale. Certificate 18. USA/UK.
92 minutes. Directed by Bernard Rose. Written by Lisa Enos, Bernard Rose;
based on "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" by Leo Tolstoy. Starring Danny Huston,
Peter Weller, James Merendino, James Merendino, Adam Krentzman, Lisa Enos,
Alison Taylor, Joanne Duckman, Robert Graham, Caroleen
Feeney.
"ivans xtc." starts slow, with its
grim photography taking a few sombre views of L.A. and introducing us to
the sharks that are Hollywood agents and their clients. The film seems like
it's going to be another exposé of the coldness and cynicism of the
industry: when the news reaches Ivan Beckman's colleagues that he died of
cancer last night, the first things they think to do after the initial shock
are to scoop up his client list and shake their heads while announcing that
cancer must be a cover story.
Ivan had not been living a careful life. He was
a good agent, one committed to wooing people, taking careful gauge of the
social politics around him and using them to his advantage, and doing so
in hazes of booze, women and cocaine. "What happened?" asks one of the more
gauche men at the conference table just after the death is announced. "Freebase
his face off?"
The introductory passages get us curious about
Ivan, preparing us for his entrance, before the story of his final days is
told in flashback. Danny Huston, son of John, plays the title role, in one
of the best performances of the year; there's a real presence to this guy,
who moves with rhythm and odd charm, and seems familiar, what with his wily
looks being a cross between Jack Nicholson and Vincent D'Onofrio, the sound
of his voice a slinky croak mixing amusement and resignation in the same
way as Donald Sutherland.
As we join Ivan, he is becoming the star of his
agency, having pulled some ingenious moves to sign a big star named Don West
(Peter Weller). Ivan's assistant congratulates him with the affection and
excitement of a sister, and buddies cannot resist hugging him in the corridor.
The news that he has lung cancer hits home like a vicious prank from God.
Ivan screws, drinks, pops pills and snorts coke; the one thing he doesn't
do is smoke. It would seem absurd to tell anyone the news. Ivan goes to a
party the night he finds out, smokes a cigarette to see how it feels, attempts
to provoke an argument to see if hostility and self-pity is the way to go,
and ends up just getting into the rhythm of the party. Another night, another
bimbo, another daze, whatever.
The fascination of "ivans xtc." comes in the power
of the Huston performance, which seems so larger than life and yet so fragile,
and in the way the Ivan character accepts the news of his illness so quickly
but still finds himself unable to react. He buys a stack of books about learning
to deal with cancer. He goes to his father's house for dinner, and quietly,
habitually rehashes the old argument about whether he's spending his life
doing anything useful. He spends time away from company, whispering to his
dog, pondering his humanity and doing a lot of coughing. And yet he still
finds himself going into work, calling up his girlfriend, driving to Don's
for more wild parties. It's as if he can feel the pain and fear coming through,
and wants to react emotionally, but can't quite find the time.
The director, Bernard Rose, has made commercial
movies like "Candyman", as well as the legendary scare flick "Paperhouse",
but found himself producing "ivans xtc." for $500,000 and running into arguments
with the Creative Artists Agency, who claimed the screenplay was based on
Jay Moloney, former agent to Rose and a high-profile CAA figure. Rose got
around the obstacles by citing Tolstoy's "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" as his
inspiration and filming his picture on high-definition video, and the techniques
work: It matters not who inspired Ivan Beckman, as he is in a long tradition
of men both real and fictional who cast themselves into oblivion, ending
up with nothing stronger to show for themselves than loud cries and heavy
tears. The videotape photography casts the right mood of overcast sickliness,
while creating an intimacy that lets us look through the fog and feel strong,
instinctive sympathy for the film's protagonist. Whether he deserves it or
not is something he never gets the chance to figure out.
COPYRIGHT©
2002 Ian Waldron-Mantgani
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