I have a confession to make: I'm a huge fan of TV commercials. Growing up in a small province in the Philippines, I was one of the weirdos who enjoyed the commercials just as much as the shows they were interrupting. There was this soap commercial that showed a woman in a grocery store being advised by her conscience on which bath soap to buy for her husband and kids. Then there are the countless ads on whitening products, usually about a teenager with dark skin, few friends, and no boyfriend. Later, after having used the whitening soap, lotion or cream, she is shown to be running around, bathed in glorious sunlight, with her newfound friends and boyfriend, all thanks to her fabulous fair skin. Those commercials were all ridiculously fallacious, of course, and I loved them.
Here in the states, one of the more common commercials that I find really amusing are the ads for anti-depressant drugs. Just to be clear, I do not find depression amusing or funny in any way. The commercials for these drugs, on the other hand, are a different story. It is always interesting to me how a person who's all gloomy and sad is suddenly running across fields of green with a huge smile on her face, as though everything in the world is finally right, after having taken the said drug. What's more interesting to me is how common and frequent these commercials are. In the Philippines, where many are poor, jobless and hungry, I have never seen a single commercial for anti-depressant drug. But that discussion may be for another blog.
The commonness of depression and the drugs that supposedly cure it make Steven Sodebergh's Side Effects relevant since many of us, I'm sure, have wondered about how truly effective these drugs are . That is, until you reach the second half of the movie and realize that you're actually watching a different film than you originally thought you were. Side Effects is a true thriller about Emily (the wonderful Rooney Mara) who is plunged to depression after her husband Martin (Channing Tatum) is sent to prison for insider trading. Along with the loss of her husband is the loss of her comfortable life - her house, her car, her money. A suicide attempt brings Emily to see Dr. Jonathan Banks (Jude Law), who begins prescribing her anti-depressant drugs with unexpected and lethal side effects and consequences. Dr. Banks begins consulting Emily's former shrink, Dr. Victoria Siebert (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who may know more about Emily's troubles than she initially shows.
At this point, I am not allowed to tell you anything else except that Side Effects is a clever movie you should watch. It takes such a dramatic and unexpected twist and turn that you'll find yourself with "WTF?" bubbles floating around your head. The movie, beautifully shot in that ethereal and hazy way anti-depressant drug commercials are, takes its time in revealing the many layers of secrets and motives that by the time the tables are turned on us, we find ourselves surprised, yet satisfied with how big the payoff is at the end.
But the true revelation in the movie is Mara, who was last seen in the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (where I honestly thought her performance was lacking). Here, too, you might dismiss her as a lazy actress, going through the motions of depression and listlessness. But stay in your seat a little while and you realize that she's been taking you for crazy ride, that she's been manipulating you into thinking what she wants you to think, and without revealing too much, that there is more depth in those big eyes of hers than you'd initially think. Mara's performance, one that makes you root for her, one that does not allow you to take your eyes off of her even as the world around her spirals out of control, is truly important and necessary in delivering a final act that will make you want to watch the film again from the beginning.
While the movie thrills and leaves you breathless as the credits begin to roll, it could have been more. It could have tackled bigger themes or delivered a bigger final act. It could have been great. Instead, it settles for being good, one that still needs to be seen for fun, if not for any deep or original insight.
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