Review of The Square (2008) by Olaolu A — 07 May 2012

A dark and dank Aussie neo-noir thriller that probably won't take you to places you've never been before cinematically but still provides a solid hour-and-a-half's worth of genre thrills, provided you don't go in expecting everything to be all sunny and rosy in the end. Most film noir, by its nature, is pretty cynical and grim stuff but this one is as much a straightforward, almost Shakespearean tragedy as it is a twisty, atmospheric thriller. In someways, it is even more downbeat than another recent Australian import, 2010's Animal Kingdom, although I liked that film slightly more. Unlike this effort, that one took what could have been a garden variety crime drama in a more interesting direction and became something far more powerful as a result. On the other hand, this film is content to be your basic tale of lust, infidelity, murder and betrayal - everything that one expects from this sort of movie. It can be argued that perhaps it wears its influences on its sleeve a bit too much; in particular, I was reminded of the Coen Brother's debut Blood Simple and Sam Raimi's A Simple Plan (the fact that this involves cheating spouses brings to mind the former, while the greed and duplicity of the main characters could easily remind one of the latter). Still, it manages to infuse the material with enough freshness that it doesn't come off as a complete clone of its cinematic ancestors.

For me, one aspect of the film that keeps it from reaching its full potential is a near dearth of likable or sympathetic characters. Yes, I realize that these kind of films are usually populated with all sorts of unsavory types but in order for something like this to be truly devastating, we need to be drawn to the protagonists and emotionally invested in their plight. Unfortunately, neither of the individuals in the principal pairing, Ray (David Roberts) and Carla (a sexy Claire van der Boom) succeeded in getting me in his or her corner. Putting aside their obviously devious and conniving nature, neither of these two characters demonstrates that they are very bright (she is clearly more the manipulative of the pair but he is supposed to be a construction project manager so you'd think that he'd be better at executing plans). Every time they try to scheme or plot something, it inevitably goes horribly awry because of their carelessness and their attempts to fix their problems only exacerbate the situation until it becomes too much for anyone to handle. It would be hilarious if only it didn't turn out to be so tragic. It's pretty clear that everyone in this movie is headed on a collision course with catastrophe but despite our intellectual awareness of this, it's tough to truly feel any empathy for these people even as they're descending deeper and deeper into the personal hells that they've created for themselves.

Just because the characters aren't sympathetic, that doesn't mean they're not well-acted. As the cheating spouses, both David Roberts and Claire van der Boom give strong performances and allow us to sense their characters' desperation as they scheme to break free of the monotony that has defined their existences but find themselves in way over their heads in the process. Both understand how to deliver dialogue but where they truly shine is in their non-verbal acting. There are several scenes where the looks on their faces tell us everything we need to know. As Claire's husband Smithy, a tow truck driver who is a low-level crook on the side, and Ray's wife, Martha, both Anthony Hanes and Lucy Bell are solid but they don't threaten to take the spotlight away from the leads. Also worth mentioning is Joel Edgerton who, in addition to co-writing the screenplay with Matthew Dabner, has a significant onscreen role as Billy, the thug-for-hire whom Ray uses to help cover his and Carla's tracks and who unwittingly -and quite literally - sparks the first major tragedy of the film. In recent years, the actor has seen his profile rise on both sides of the ocean with superlative performances in films such as the aforementioned Animal Kingdom and 2011's Warrior where he played Tom Hardy's older brother. Personally, I didn't find Edgerton to be quite the standout here that he was in either of those two more recent films, but he still does a solid job in a somewhat cliched role. As Billy, he is suitably shady and menacing, which is really all that is needed of him.

I would say that in this case, Edgerton's efforts as a writer are more noteworthy than his acting (although he clearly didn't write the most interesting character for himself to play). Again, there is nothing particularly original about the plot line but it is still well-written and Edgerton and Dabner refreshingly don't feel the need to infuse this with Hollywood cliches. Instead, they allow things to unfold the way they likely would if this were to happen in real life. I'd say that they deserve credit for not pulling any punches in steering the story to it's natural, albeit grim, conclusion. Perhaps the manner in which the movie elects to wrap things up isn't all that surprising considering everything that leads up to it, but it still packs a punch (although the lack of emotional investment with the main characters doesn't allow this blow to be as strong as it could have been). Also, in a departure from most noir thrillers, the comic relief is very limited here; in fact, I honestly can't recall anything here that could remotely be construed as even a little funny (except perhaps for a small subplot involving the canine companions of the two lovers). The potential is there for a deliciously dark Murphy's Law - type comedy but the script takes it's characters and their circumstances very seriously - perhaps too seriously. Sitting in the director's chair is Nash Edgerton, Joel's older brother (the fact that this film is the product of sibling filmmakers further strengthens the connection to Blood Simple); the elder Edgerton definitely does justice to his younger brother's script. The pacing is tight with more than enough tension and suspense to keep most viewers riveted and the proceedings are suffused with atmosphere although perhaps it's not as overwhelming here as it is in other similar efforts. In the final analysis, this film may not offer anything that's truly new and groundbreaking, but it executes it's stock elements with enough aplomb to be worth viewing for fans of noir thrillers that hit all the expected bases but don't feel the need to cheat viewers with a cop-out ending.