Shame (2011)

Character studies just aren't this focused and singular anymore. Clearly Steve McQueen has a great eye and is turning into a fantastic director, but he accomplishes something here that he didn't with Hunger: he keeps it simple by focusing on one man's affliction and how that informs everything else in his life. He's not making sweeping political points, or bold statements, he's merely showing you a devastatingly honest study of human desolation. McQueen is often praised for his compositional aptitude (and rightfully so), but for me, it's his framing that separates him. In this film, he uses space like a third character in each frame. Every moment serves a purpose, whether it be a mangled crosswalk sign casting a ghostly sheen over a rain-slick sidewalk, or a lingering shot of a bathroom door exterior, hinting at Brandon's covert and lonely satiation of his constant hunger. McQueen also places a significant trust in Fassbender (who delivers what may be his finest performance yet), and is rewarded with a film that is a pitch-perfect companion to Hunger. He is an auteur-in-the-making, and possesses the potential of a Malick, capable of injecting the most simple of human truths into pure and unflinching motifs. Where Terrence Malick's Tree of Life is a euphoric celebration of humanity's insignificant, yet sacred, place within the cosmos, Shame is the study of our species' need to find connection in spite of our more selfish and isolating primal vices. The film's use of space and motion possesses an almost melodic quality, creating a rhythm for Fassbender and Cary Mulligan to delicately orbit each other with. The resulting chemistry is organic, their dynamic magical. There are moments of pure whimsy and joy between them that makes the sadness of their history bearable. In the end, all they have is each other.With its much-discussed NC-17 rating, while watching Shame I couldn't help but think one of my all time favorite movies, Midnight Cowboy, the first and only X-rated work to win Best Picture. Cowboy represented an era in American film making which was rebellious and brave, reflective of the tumultuous time it was borne out of. Given the right exposure, I believe Shame has potential to become a similar cultural landmark. It's harrowing, frank and brave in its execution, and yet at the same time, it's a beautiful piece of cinema.