A film review: Nicolas Roeg's "Eureka" [1983, UK / USA]

For a long time, it had been fashionable for critics to trash every Nicolas Roeg film made after "Bad Timing". Thankfully, we now have a whole new generation that's not only rediscovering his later films, but also reevaluating them within the context of his entire body of work. "Eureka" (1983), partly inspired by a true story, was the first of his 'later' films to be routinely overlooked due to the changing expectations of a fickle audience.














The film follows the fortunes of Jack McCann (Gene Hackman), a perseverant gold prospector made good after striking it rich in the frozen wilderness of Canada. Split into three distinct parts, the first part of the film is dedicated to McCann's heroic quest amongst the debris of broken hearts and shattered spirits that came seeking fortune before him. The surreal journey he undertakes takes on a mythic proportion as elements of magic and providence are woven into the narrative.

The film fast forwards twenty years into the future immediately after, where McCann is the wealthiest man in the world, watching helplessly as his daughter Tracy (Theresa Russell) falls madly in love and marries a handsome idler named Claude (Rutger Hauer) - he suspects that Claude might have married her only for the money.

Around the same time, Miami businessman Mayakofsky (Joe Pesci) wants to convince McCann into selling his Caribbean island named Eureka to set-up a Vegas-style casino town, with the help of McCann's close associate Charlie Perkins (Ed Lauter), and using his lawyer-sidekick Aurelio D'Amato (Mickey Rourke) as the go-between. He devices dubious methods to obtain the property, but McCann isn't interested in selling it.

The final part of the film deals with the aftermath of McCann's horrific murder and the shoddy trial that ensues when Claude is accused of murdering his father-in-law. Claude argues his own defence by calling in Tracy as a witness, but will learn to his discomfort that Tracy, far from being his 'trophy' wife, was the one to initiate the seduction - it was she who chose him, rather than the other way around.

Tracy defends his innocence by proclaiming his incapacity to hold any true convictions in life, let alone love. Through her courtroom testimony, she also summarises her slain father's life with a surprising insight that will go some distance in completing the portrait of the real McCann behind the adventurer and doting father of the first two parts of the film...

 

Defending "Eureka":
If this event-rich film would've started off as an action adventure, and progressed into a tragedy-filled family melodrama, some critics would've probably been satisfied with its outcome, and perhaps even an Oscar red-carpet would have beckoned if a 'final justice' of sorts for the tragedy had been served.

But this is a Nicolas Roeg film - whose stylised film narrative and surreal moments, briefly interspersed with tantalising, but brilliant glimpses into the psychological, philosophical, and mystical aspects of the human psyche - into reasons behind motives, are as adored and appreciated in films like Walkabout and Don't Look Now. "Eureka" is no different in its approach from his other better appreciated films, and it is baffling to come across arguments that suggest that Roeg could've gone about it differently.

For Roeg, finer details, or even the plausibility of a plot had always been secondary; instead he was more interested in the effect that events have on the characters concerned. McCann is a man of action and very few words, and once his destiny of finding gold was complete, there was nothing left for him to achieve - in his own words, "Once I had it all. Now I just have everything". Hence there was need for a mouthpiece - Tracy in this instance, to elucidate McCann's reasons for struggling to negotiate his remaining days.

There's a reason why twenty years of his life following the gold discovery is not shown. The film is essentially about the leftover part of McCann's life; it is not about seeing him accumulate wealth, get married and purchase whole islands. Also, without going into the details, the cryptic final scene with 'unanswered questions' is indeed typical of Roeg. You're free to interpret and judge the characters appearing in the final scene in your own way; all that Roeg wants to convey is that Eureka "will be given away". Considering the problems the film faced during its distribution, we don't know if the final cut that we see is also the way Roeg intended, but even as it stands, this is an exceptional (and woefully underrated) film by Nicolas Roeg that's Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon Blu-ray + DVD Link
I'm thankful for this excellent Blu-ray release - the copy I had so far was a poorly transferred letterboxed NTSC DVD. It is about time the rest of Nicolas Roeg's films are also remastered and brought back to life for a new audience.

 

The Nudity: Theresa Russell, Rutger Hauer, Emma Relph, and Ann Thornton
Theresa Russell is at her most elegant and sensual self in this film, and also appears nude or partially nude in at least five scenes. For a Dutchman, Rutger Hauer's diction is impressive, and he too appears nude in one scene. Emma Relph and Ann Thornton play wives of colonial British officers who get more than they bargained for after Claude takes them to an outlandish 'voodoo orgy', if ever there was one, where an uncredited actress is also seen trying to swallow or do some harm to a hapless python - bloody expats! :-)



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Candy Clark & co in "The Man Who Fell to Earth" [1976 UK]

We're now getting down to the classics of the great Nicolas Roeg. His 1976 drama, "The Man Who Fell to Earth" can be rated as one of the all-time sc-fi classics in cinematic history, proudly occupying the same exalted podium as Fritz Lang's Metropolis, Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and George Lucas' Star Wars trilogy. The film's uniqueness stems from the ambitious manner in which it dissects contemporary society, politics, and humanity as a whole in a typically European fashion - droll, filled with irony, and approaching it from the protagonist - an extraterrestrial's viewpoint.




Storyline:
Based on a Walter Tavis novel of the same name, and adapted for screen by Paul Mayersberg, the film tells the story of an extraterrestrial humanoid who arrives on earth to help the few remaining beleaguered people in his home planet, which has turned into one big desert. The reasons for these are not given in the film (even if they go into some detail in the novel), merely stating lack of water as reason for his arrival. His people had known about earth for a while through intercepted radio signals and have come to gain intimate knowledge of its dominant species, humans. The plan is for him to amass wealth and power quickly with his advanced technology, and use it to build a spaceship to bring back the rest of the people, more importantly his wife and two kids. After landing in New Mexico, he assumes the name of Thomas Newton, and interestingly uses a British passport to identify himself. He soon embarks on a love affair with hotel chambermaid Mary-Lou, who also moves in to live with him. But his mind is restless, worrying about his family and resorts to alcohol. When Mary-Lou discovers his true identity, she finds it extremely hard to love him as before, and despite her efforts, they separate.

He succeeds emphatically in building his corporate empire, and also manages to build his spaceship. But the US authorities destroy it and take Newton captive for an undisclosed period of time. The reason for this, apart from the obvious desire to 'study' him after learning about his identity, is the fact that they were quite weary of allowing a single corporation to become so powerful as to pose a threat to the very existence of a government (Google take note). By the time Newton realises he is free again, all the people he knew had aged considerably, while he remains his youthful self. He is still wealthy, but could do nothing with it as he realises his family may no longer even be alive. Despite people betraying him, he could hold no bitterness, even offering to help them financially if they need. He's now a recording artist releasing songs with cryptic messages, which he hopes will one day be heard by his wife through the radio broadcasts that reach there. And the film ends with a drunk Newton passing off at a restaurant table while chatting with his former employee Bryce...




A true masterpiece:
When a creative endeavour cannot be bettered or replicated, either because of an artist's unique state of mind, or serendipitous circumstances surrounding its creation, in my view a masterpiece is born. And we are talking about a team of artists here. For a start, no one would even fund a project with such ambitious a scope these days - it is far safer to deploy CGI and work with a simple storyline, one that the impatient masses can sit through. There is so much going on here for a sci-fi film, using a variety of references, from Greek myths (Icarus) to Japanese folk art (Kabuki) and even Citizen Kane, it recreates the disorientation of anyone arriving at an alien planet superbly while showing our world as would be perceived by a visitor, warts and all.

Nic Roeg has a penchant for casting performance artists in films, like Mick Jagger in Performance, and Art Garfunkel in Bad Timing. Here, it's an already famous David Bowie making his film debut, who plays the eponymous extraterrestrial who fell to earth. Not only does he look like one, during those heady Ziggy Stardust days he also felt like one, relying on cocaine to keep him going. During the shoot of the film, David Bowie was simply being himself, and what an impact it had on the film..!

The superlative cinematography by Anthony Richmond adds an additional layer to the film's narrative. Coming from a cinematographic background, Nic Roeg has made the best possible use of widescreen - when I first watched this film, it was on TV during the 80's (i.e., full-frame), it was a pleasant surprise when I finally got to see it in its original aspect ratio. The editing is crisp with few dissolving transitions - the way I like it, as it reflects on the quality of the screenplay and direction. The film is also supported by a superb soundtrack that also features some sumptuous saxophone compositions by John Phillips that sadly are not available separately.

It may have a plethora of seemingly lecherous scenes and playful jokes, but it is an unapologetically bleak film, it won't leave you in tears of joy. But this multi-layered gem speaks the language of anyone who feels alienated, anyone who find the system driving their spirits down. It is a film as relevant today as when it was made, and therefore Highly Recommended Viewing..!




DVD info:
The DVD I have is the excellent 2-disc NTSC Criterion Collection, which comes with a superb remastered transfer and load of extras, including the paperback version of Walter Tavis' novel. It may not include an interview with David Bowie himself, but it comes with an insightful commentary from Roeg, screenwriter Mayersberg, and an interesting interview with Candy Clark who plays Mary-Lou. But this edition is out of print now, and the ones being sold are ridiculously expensive. But there's a recent Blu-ray from Optimum Home Entertainment (although Region 2) which appears promising, but not sure of any of the available extras. You can take a look at some comparisons here.
Amazon Blu-ray Link
Amazon Criterion Collection Link




Compilation: Candy Clark, Linda Hutton, Adrienne Larussa, Hillary Holland, and Claudia Jennings
I'd normally not brag about my compilations, but I must say I'm quite pleased with this one as it all falls in place neatly. It took a while but I think it was worth it.



Scene Guide:

• Nathan Bryce (Rip Torn) is your quintessential 'cliché' of a scientist, separated and spending most of his free time with his female students as young as his daughter. The first to feature is Linda Hutton - notice the parallels drawn between their sex-romp and the Kabuki theatre watched by Newton (David Bowie)! Followed by some cheeky dialogues repeated by two other student-lovers played by cute Adrienne Larussa and the bespectacled Hillary Holand - each comparing Rip Torn's member to their respective dads'..! :D
• Mary-Lou is a chambermaid, kind-hearted but blissfully common. She takes pity on Newton's frailty and falls in love with him, we see her first in the bath giving shy Newton a not-too-subtle invitation, and later in bed with him. Mary-Lou is played by the rather dishy Candy Clark - is it just me or does she really bear a vague resemblance to Stefania Sandrelli..?
• A frustrated Newton reveals his true self to Mary-Lou, enough for her to press the panic button and wet herself (naughty Roeg). She makes an honest effort to accept Newton for what he is - some revealing close-ups here (naughty-naughty Roeg)...
• An almost irrelevant scene this - we're shown how even the guys who work for the establishment essentially live a 'normal' life - we see Peters, possibly an FBI agent with his wife at the pool. The wife is played by Claudia Jennings.
• Time has taken its toll on Mary-Lou when she visits Newton after many years, who on the other hand has barely aged. Possibly the most erotic scene in the film, it is also telling in that while in the first part of the compilation, you find Linda Hutton 'shooting' pictures of her lovemaking and showing results from the self-developing film that Newton's corporation manufactures, here we have a different kind of shooting as Newton uses earth's technology - a handgun, to spice up their love session. Roeg's attention to detail doesn't go unnoticed with his strategic use of a middle aged body-double to portray a mature Mary-Lou..! :-)

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Theresa Russell & co in "Bad Timing" [1980 UK]

The 1980 film, "Bad Timing" is arguably the last masterpiece by the great Nicolas Roeg. He has of course made some fine films later, but none of them reach the heights set here, be it the characterisation, direction, or the editing - one can devote entire articles to each of the above features - so much to see and appreciate. Add to this Anthony Richmond's excellent cinematography, the eclectic soundtrack, and not least the superlative performance by actors playing the main characters - Harvey Keitel is brilliant, singer/songwriter Art Garfunkel sincere, and Theresa Russell captivating - you can see they were all 'a team' while making this film. Not often do I find it hard to describe how good a film actually is - even after second viewing, new information keeps sinking in.

About the film:
It's essentially a study of two characters with conflicting interests, in love - in retrospect they shouldn't have even met. Milena, a young American - married but carefree, meets Alex - a judgemental, possessive and older compatriot, and a visiting lecturer of psychoanalysis. Set in the Austrian capital Vienna, the film captures their mutual obsession and contradictions, and the tragic consequences. And this is done beautifully using short and sharp vignettes, flashing back and forth in time, like memory, as if 'remembering someone from the past'. Mr. Roeg gives an interesting explanation in the DVD extras for the reason behind this unique style of his - bewildering at times with those splintered edits, but which all makes perfect sense towards the end. He tells a story so succinctly, feeding audience just enough information at any given time to keep their attention - I reiterate what I mentioned in an earlier article. The film also uses symbolism to embellish its character study, notably through book titles and artworks (aptly Viennese, like Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele). Surprisingly, the film with such a controversial subject was produced by the rather conservative Rank Organisation, even if they refused to put in their gong man logo during the film's opening credits.

I'd readily recommend the NTSC Criterion Collection DVD over any other version for the sheer quality of transfer and the loaded extras. There is an absorbing interview with the great man Nic Roeg himself, and also some candid thoughts from his ex-wife and star of the film, Theresa Russell. She gives an outstanding performance as the wild orchid Milena - she's also incredibly cute and sexy! This was the first time the twenty one year old Russell had worked with Roeg, and they obviously hit it off, on and off stage. Needless to say, Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.com DVD Link




Compilation: Theresa Russell, Ellan Fartt, Dana Gillespie, and unknown actress
It's impossible to give a scene guide for this compilation that would make sense, as each of them is inter-cut with flashbacks and flash forwards - you just have to watch it. I've also inserted a couple of non-nude but sexy scenes in between, notably that of Russell and Garfunkel scene in the car when she (unintentionally) spills the schnapps she was drinking over her dress - the dialogue was not in the script but used nevertheless, and the shocked Garfunkel's expression in it is priceless. I've also edited out a few seconds of nudity that could have given too much of the plot away, especially in the final scene when Milena is raped whilst approaching coma.






Bonus Scene: Clips of Deleted Scenes from the DVD extras
A couple of deleted scenes here - they don't have sound, and have also not been remastered, for obvious reasons.






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Theresa Russell in "Hotel Paradise" [1996 UK, Germany]

British director-cinematographer Nicolas Roeg had also worked in several US productions, but I'll be focusing on his predominantly UK and European filmography for this blog.

Nicolas Roeg, in brief:
His was one of the most magnificent careers in British cinema, starting as an apprentice and working his way upwards to become a cutting-edge film-maker. By the time he got to direct his first film, he already had over twenty years of industry experience. He never did film school, but is a great master of cinema, exquisitely mixing his narrative to give the audience information only when he feels they're ready for it, expecting them to put the pieces back together on their own - he's one man who can force you to sit through his films. His classics such as The Man Who Fell to Earth, Don't Look Now, and Bad Timing, to randomly pick a few, speak volumes of his artistry and understanding of the medium. He remains one of my favourite British directors, even as I prefer his ground-breaking and innovative earlier work. For those wanting to know about Mr. Roeg through proper film historians, here's the link.

I'll ease Roeg into the blog with his 1996 short and sexy film, "Hotel Paradise" - conveniently hidden in my DVD "Erotic Tales volume 3" (from which "Diabelska Edukacja" was also compiled). Roeg cast his then wife, American actress Theresa Russell as the bride opposite a young Vincent D'Onofrio.

Storyline:
The bride wakes up naked from drunken stupor to find herself in a hotel room, handcuffed to the bedpost, and a stranger sleeping beside her. It is her wedding day, the only thing she remembers from last night was trying on her bridal dress and having some champagne. She manages to locate the key to free herself, and promptly handcuffs the naked stranger in her bed, lest he wakes up. She spends a good part of the film trying to locate her clothing - her only intention is to get dressed and leave the room. She is not interested in knowing what happened the night before, and ignores whatever the stranger has to say after waking up. But the stranger is already in love even though he doesn't know her name yet, and now has his task cut-out to convince her to also love him before she leaves the room. He keeps talking - handcuffed and naked - he has no other means to change her mind. Most of what he says is rubbish, but it is sincere and endearing, and we end up liking the b*stard. But will the bride who's about to get married also feel the same..?

This is a surprisingly beautiful and sexy number as I wasn't expecting much from Roeg while he was making some rather mediocre stuff at the time. The cinematography and lighting is superb and the direction spotless, even if the dialogues sound at times like a BBC radio book-reading. What's also amazing is, it is erotic despite there being no depiction of actual lovemaking. The early scenes of the voluptuous Theresa Russell are among the sexiest I've seen in a while, reminding me of Marina Pierro from Walerian Borowczyk's "Les Héroïnes du Mal". This is a true 'nude scene classic' worth every penny, even more so when you've an amazing deal going on Amazon.de at the time of this post. Forget about the description which is from a different volume - as long as you have volume 3, you're alright.
Amazon.de DVD link




Compilation: Theresa Russell
Made from some of the juiciest bits from the film. A scene guide is not necessary as the dialogues are in English.





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