XX/XY - How To Lose A Girl Over a Ten Year Period
Written: Jul 04 '03
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Mark Ruffalo, Kathleen Robertson, Petra Wright are on fire.
Cons: Weak performance by Maya Stange.
The Bottom Line: I liked it more than I should have. Recommended for those who enjoy delving into the psyche of complex characters.
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| kristinafh's Full Review: XX/XY |
Preamble
Childless today. What's a girl to do? Find herself an arty movie on the opposite end of Indianapolis. And that's what I did. Took me 70 minutes to get across town but I arrived in time to watch this movie with a bunch of old people. How does this happen to be their kind of movie???
The Story
It's 1993 and aspiring filmmaker Coles (Mark Ruffalo) is at a college party at Sarah Lawrence, scoping girls out. Sam (Maya Stange) comes into view and instantly, the two hit it off. The usual sparks fly and they head back to the bedroom - with Sam's roommate, Thea (Kathleen Robertson). Get your mind out of the gutter people - you'll be disappointed.
Eventually, the threesome becomes a twosome and although Coles and Sam do not say they are exclusive, they certainly do act in that manner. Coles, although loving with Sam, has issues opening up. He answers questions with questions. Sam cannot figure out why he won't open up to her. After a nine-month period of dating, Sam asks him if he's been with other women. After some stalling, he finally admits that once, he slept with another woman and it meant nothing. Sam, understandably, is angry and hurt. She decides to get back at him later that night at a party. Even though he "forgives" her, the game is not over.
While this game is going on, Thea has her own issues to deal with. Dressing provocatively (man she's a hot Goth chick!), she has no issue coming on to anything with three legs. Heck, sometimes, they don't have to be male. Thea pushes the envelope whenever she can. One day, it gets her in trouble.
During a private party (Thea, Sam, Coles, and another guy, Sid), Coles and Thea screw on the floor, in plain view of Sam. Coles has no shame in getting caught. For Sam, it's the end of her rope. All three part ways without closure.
Fast-forward ten years. Coles lives in a nice apartment with his girlfriend of five years, Claire (Petra Wright). Although he's made one film, he earns his $$$ by working as an animator at an advertising agency. One day, Coles runs into Sam outside of a gym. Sparks fly and the two decide to rekindle their friendship.
Thea, who Sam has reconnected with, is married to a respectable guy (David Thornton), who owns a restaurant that he's named after her. Thea doesn't seem to have changed much except that she's not sleeping with every person she meets. Out of three friends, she almost seems the most normal one.
Thea (and Miles), Sam (and a date), and Coles (and Claire) start spending time together as couples. Claire picks up on Coles strong attraction to Sam and she tries to acknowledge the past relationship with Coles. He goes headlong into denial and refuses to talk to her about it. In fact, he shuts her out of his thoughts because all he can think about is how much he wants Sam.
Does Coles and Sam connect?
Does Coles and Claire stay together?
Does Coles and Thea do it again?
All of this - and much more - can be found out if you choose to see the movie.
What I Thought
I really liked this movie. It made me think. Although I thought the story was going to be heavily centered around sex, it wasn't. It got to the heart of relationships - intimacy or the lack thereof. If you're a chick, I know you understand that story :). Austin Chick did a great job at his first movie. As a writer, he made me appreciate the thought processes that people who have issues with intimacy, go through. Seeing things through (mostly) the eyes of a male was certainly a different point of view for me. While it could have been played up in a traditional soap-opera way, it wasn't. Austin gave many layers to his character - especially the main male - Coles.
As a director, I enjoyed how he handled the transition between the early nineties and the early 2000's. He was respectful of both time periods and instead of relying on specific pop-cultural items to drive home the story, he allowed the characters to do that.
I so look forward to whatever Austin intends on doing next.
Mark Ruffalo is...breathtaking in this movie. And for once, I don't mean that in a sexual way. I swear, one look spoke three million emotions. When the movie ended, I wanted more of him and Coles. I wanted to take him aside and try to dig deeper in order to find out what motivates him to think that the grass is always greener.
Kathleen Robertson - who I've only seen in that FOX show :) - surprised me. I really dug her look as a college student. Although she wasn't given as much up close time as Mark Ruffalo, she was another character who I wanted to dig into, in order to understand what made her tick.
Initially, Petra Wright annoyed me. Blonde, perky, perfect - I just wanted her out of the picture. The optimism she used initially to introduce her character to us was a smoke screen for the vibrant, passionate woman that she becomes in front of our eyes. To say I was impressed - very much an understatement.
The biggest issue with the movie was the casting of Maya Stange. Her voice was quite annoying to me (think Joey Lauren Adams). She had some chemistry with Mark Ruffalo but not a ton. Maya just didn't seem to have the same passion for her role as the others had for theirs. Don't hit me when I say this, but I probably would have cast someone like Bridget Moynahan or Claire Danes in this role.
I really liked the music chosen for XX/XY. With the exception of Kiss, Kiss, I didn't recognize any of them. I will definitely have to look into that soundtrack!
The End
XX/XY is rated R for sexuality, language, and brief drug use. If you're in the mood for a character-driven, thought-provoking movie, this is one you'll want to catch.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
kristinafh
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 - Top 50 |
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Member: Kristina Frazier-Henry
Location: Indiana
Reviews written: 1344
Trusted by: 1169 members
About Me:
Cannot breathe. Missing Barbara.
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