Review of Equus (1977) by Craig T — 07 Jul 2011

Sidney Lumet was a truly gifted and respected director. His work spanned decades and decades with artistic and emotional appeal. From his work on 12 Angry Men to my personal favorite, Network, he always delivered something uniquely different from film to film. His last film was in 2007 (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead) in which he directed some of the most talented performers of present day and I feel that that was a fine picture to end a beautiful career on. These words of praise I give in honor of an amazingly talented man described as " a director's director" by his colleagues. He passed away a short time ago and yet the echo of his absence will ring on for years to come. I would like to now take a look at one of Lumet's most regarded and controversial films, Equus. It was up for Best Picture alongside a few other 70's films you might have heard about: Annie Hall and Star Wars. Equus is not space opera or soap opera though. This is not a film for the young or the timid.

A young stable boy (Peter Firth) has just been sent to an institution for violently blinding six horses. His psychiatrist is played by Richard Burton and is quickly fascinated with the boy, his fixation on horses, his odd home life, but mostly by the accounts of the violent act. The strange boy offers insight into his condition slowly as Burton earns his trust, yet there is something always under the surface (not only with the boy but also with the doctor). As we see where the boy came from and details of his sheltered life, we also begin to wonder things about Burton and his stability. He seems to have no interest in his wife or most areas of his life except his work. He begins to find almost a common ground with boy in the fact that horses represent a life, a love, a reason to go on in this crazy world. The plot deepens as Lumet takes us hostage so that we open our minds for psychological warfare. I had always heard and read about this film and was never ready to experience it. I will not say that I was completely ready...

Lumet knew what he was getting into with this story, as it was originally a play, and prepared for the controversy (as carefully as you can I suppose). This is a psychological exploration into a depth of particular intrigue. It is a voyage into a deeper, darker side of one particular human condition. Perhaps the biggest word spread on Equus was the borderline bestiality that takes place in the film. It is indeed disturbing to say the least. There is much material here that I must admit, almost overwhelmed me. The nudity is frequent and full frontal and Firth's riding scene with the horse is beyond strange. However, the lasting power here is the implosive performances by Burton and Firth. It is electrifying to see Burton ranting in the shadows of the fear and life as well as all his demons of failure. He admits to living a hollow life and is so lifeless that he clings onto the morbid insanity of Firth as his only mental life preserver. Firth screams and professes his delusions naked in a stable covered in blood while we sit frozen in our own terror and bewilderment. The effects of this picture pound the viewer much like a merciless horror film. The results are similar and even more thought provoking. While the material is not shot with cheap, shocking intentions, one can remember that this is a psychological study on a case of a sick stable boy. It is the "Exorcist of dramas" and rarely do I allow myself to be caught up in shock value, but with an actor like Richard Burton opening up the voltage full throttle, it is impossible not to walk, or limp away from Equus the least bit unscathed. (B).