Review of Wilde Salomé (2013) by Joshua L — 04 Apr 2018

I finally got the chance to see Wilde Salome at the Lammele Theater in LA, during its limited 1 week theatrical run. Pacino filmed this documentary back in 2006 while he was performing the play Salome at a Los Angeles Theater. This documentary follows a similar structure to that of Pacino's first directorial feature film "Looking For Richard", however Pacino does experiment quite a bit with this film. I must say that this is a very unique and unconventional documentary in that Pacino is attempting to accomplish 3 different goals. One is to provide insight in Oscar Wilde's life and the origins and history of his play Salome. Secondly, to film a behind the scenes documentary into his stage production of Salome in Los Angeles from 2006. And lastly, to actually film an entire live performance of Salome for the purpose of adapting it for a film viewing experience. The film version of the play is simply called "Salome" and was a double feature and shown right after the documentary "Wilde Salome" screened.

For me, the experience was very interesting. I was not too familiar with Oscar Wilde nor the play Salome, and Pacino does a good job of explaining the history of both subjects especially the themes that are at play in Salome. Similarly to Looking For Richard, its very entertaining to see the actors rehearse and ultimately the actual footage of Pacino and Jessica Chastain performing is amazing. This film was also Jessica's first feature film debut, Pacino basically discovered her when he was hosting auditions for Salome back in New York. She is amazing as Salome! She displays all of the sexuality, energy, and fire that is Salome and she knocks it out of the park. Pacino plays King Herod and also delivers a very nuanced and well rounded performance. What I also really liked about the film is how effective Pacino is at filming the actual performance of the play. Strategic camera placement and the use of close-up's really allow us as an audience to feel and see these characters come to live.

If you are fan of Al Pacino, or even an avid theater lover, then I highly recommended this film. It makes sense to me now after learning that it took Pacino nearly 7 years of editing to get this complex documentary down right, and I believe he achieved exactly what he was going for.