Searching for meaning...
In a stellar
performance, Billy Crudup portrays the life of
FH, a mellow man who, throughout the film
"Jesus' Son," shares the story of his life. We
learn how he became known as Fuckhead, and we
learn about falling in love with Michelle,
getting hooked on heroin, detox, moving out
West, the 12-steps, learning to feel compassion,
and the gentle, healing moments along the way.
The film's title eludes to both FH's drug use
and spiritual enlightenment by referring to the
short stories of Denis Johnson. Johnson writes
in the epigraph to his short stories the lyrics
the Velvet Underground song "Heroin." Upon first
thought, it seems an odd choice, but it fits
perfectly in this story of a man whose salvation
is found throughout the journey of his life.
"Jesus' Son" may be the consummate film about
spirituality, and it is devoid of religiosity.
FH's spirituality is not organized, and he is
not baptized in any traditional sense. Instead,
FH does what I envision Christ would have
done...he finds the spirituality of every
moment. He doesn't assign his truth to others,
but simply and quietly lives it for himself. He
sees beauty where others see ugliness, holiness
where others see profane. He is a tad psychic
and a tad psychotic. He is, quite simply
profound.
Crudup gives a masterfully controlled
performance here as FH. He shows us his deep
humanness through his drug use, his poor
choices, and his seeming apathy at times towards
others. On the other hand, as he journeys
through life we watch the physical, emotional,
intellectual and spiritual transformation of FH
come to life through Crudup's body language, his
gestures, his varying vocal tones. Literally,
every minute he is on screen is nothing short of
brilliant.
The performances that surround Crudup are
similarly excellent including the amazingly
diverse Samantha Morton as Michelle, Ben
Shenkman as Tom, and Michael Shannon as DunDun.
The film features several notable cameos
including Jack Black, Dennis Hopper, Denis Leary
and Miranda July.
Alison Maclean directs the film with a strong
sense of style to accompany the film's powerful
script by Elizabeth Cuthrell based upon the
works of Denis Johnson. Maclean's use of imagery
throughout the film, even in the smallest of
ways is a constant reinforcer to the themes of
spirituality and redemption, while her
cinematography is just the perfect blend of
color and substance.
The film is challenged, at times, by the same
issues that plagued Vincent Gallo's "The Brown
Bunny." On a few occasions, the film drags to
such a point that it becomes a distraction away
from the scene, and there are also moments where
it feels as if Maclean is simply trying too hard
to push the message across. This is even more
noticeable because of the casual pace of the
film. Those sudden, abrupt pushes are a tad too
jarring to the senses.
It is always tragic when a film of such quality
as "Jesus' Son" falls under the radar of both
box-office and critical acclaim. While I would
never expect the Oscars to reward such a film as
this, I find it appalling that the film received
only one Independent Spirit nomination (for
Crudup).
One of the joys of being a critic is that ever
so often a film creeps up on you and just blows
you away. "Jesus' Son" is such a film. Alison
Maclean takes an uncommon approach to a common
theme and comes up with a film that is nothing
short of a revelation.
©
Written by Richard Propes
TC Candler's Comment
n/a
Jacob
Hall's Comment
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