I saw “O” upon a last minute change of mind as I stood in line to purchase a ticket for The Jade Scorpion. I had no idea of what it was about, but the title and R rating suggested to me something 18th Century, or a modern day steamy romance. It was neither and if I had known anything about it, I would never have seen it. But I had to sit it out because it was another two hours until Jade Scorpion ran again.

It’s loosely based on William Shakespeare’s Othello. I saw the modern version of Romeo and Juliet and I didn’t like that either. That was a teen gang setting, this is in a Southern prep school, Palmetto Grove. That wasn’t made too clear, until further on into the picture. In the meantime I was trying to figure out whether or not the characters were in college, since I had already seen Josh Hartnett, who plays Hugo, son of basketball Coach duke (Martin Sheen) in Pearl Harbor and he definitely did not look like a high schooler.

Writer Brad Kaaya has attempted to create the modern day Othello using a prep school basketball team, its star black player Odin (Mikhi Phifer), the jealous son of the coach, Hugo who is supposed to represent Shakespeare’s Iago, Desi (Julia Stiles) the modern Desdemona, and Andrew Keegan as Michael, the innocent pawn in the quadrangle. Michael is one of the subjects of Hugo’s jealousy because he has been selected by Odin as his supporting player on the team. Giving an awards speech, Coach Duke embraces Odin and says he loves him like his own son, then Michael is called up as second team man with Odin. Hugo cowers unmentioned, missing his father’s attention, he is only “the utility man.”

Hugo-Iago sets in motion his plot to destroy his competitors by subtly revealing the secret romance between Odin and Desi, daughter of Dean Bradle (John Heard). He then uses Desi’s roommate Emily, played by Rain Phoenix, and a wimpy rich boy who he's convinced to help him by making him think he will have a chance for Desi's affections after Odin is out of the way.

Emily is under the romantic spell of Hugo who who has mastered the art of manipulating, wearing the mask of a soft, helpful friend. She unwittingly aids him by stealing a scarf which Odin had given Desi and which is then given to Michael. He then makes sure Odin sees Michael with it and furthers along the jealous suspicion he has planted in Odin's mind that Desi and Michael are seeing each other. Once Odin is thoroughly convinced of this Hugo-Iago's evil plan plunges on like a hellish meteor.

The acting was so so, the script good enough for what it was attempting to do. The actors were blended well enough. I think the timing of the release of the film goes against it (it was released two years later than planned because of the Columbine school shootings) and Josh Hartnett is no longer believable in that part. On the other hand, he was such a good guy in Pearl Harbor and such a bad guy in “O” that from an acting standpoint is a good chance to compare him in his characterizations and see his maturation.

The picture ends with the pure white doves that roost at the school which represented to Hugo his wish to soar above everybody and a warbling segment of opera which are supposed to tie into the Middle Ages Othello. The ending is artistic but does not contribute to the dramatic impact which the film attempted to achieve, but did not.



Recommended:
No

Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age