And, in an effort not to disappoint horror/thriller fans, there are some gross-out moments. Gordon includes several openly comedic scenes, such as a catfight between Brandi and Rashid's other girlfriend (played with nude abandon by Sharlene Royer), as if to remind us not to take things too seriously. Take away the blood and the human drama, and the concept is mordantly amusing. There is an underlying current of black comedy woven throughout the fabric of Struck. Brandi does what any self-respecting ditz would do in this situation: blame the victim. One can imagine Paris acting this way if a man came through her windshield. Brandi, meanwhile, comes across as an underprivileged version of Paris Hilton. He may not deserve his circumstances, but it's hard to summon a sense of excitement about him obtaining violent retribution against his persecutors. The problem is that Tom is too weak a character to generate much sympathy. ![]() ![]() For most of the film, we are intended to sympathize with Tom, who has been screwed over by the system then left trapped and bleeding in a car because a woman thinks calling 911 will cost her a chance at a job promotion. Brandi is depicted as being a little naïve and dumb but hardworking. Tom is shown being evicted from his apartment then waiting for hours for an employment interview that goes awry because of misplaced paperwork. Stuck starts out in serious fashion, introducing us to the two primary characters without a hint of tongue-in-cheek irony or cynicism. The next morning, when Tom tries to get some attention by honking the horn, she clobbers him over the head with a piece of wood, then once again leaves him alone and heads off to work. Once she gets home, she parks the car in the garage, shuts off the engine, and goes inside to have sex with Rashid. Not knowing what to do, she decided to ignore the situation. ![]() Torn up and bleeding profusely with a piece of metal in his side and a fractured leg, he dangles half-in and half-out of Brandi's windshield. Tom has been having a really bad day but it gets substantially worse when he encounters Brandi. On the way home, she's on the phone with him when she slams into the newly-homeless Tom (Stephen Rea). Her boyfriend, Rashid (Russell Hornsby), gives her some "e" to spice up their after-hours party at her place. In Stuart's fictionalized account, the driver is Brandi (Mena Suvari), a nurse's aide at a retirement home who is clubbing one Friday night with her friend, Tanya (Rukiya Bernard). He died two hours later and the body was disposed of by a male friend. She drove home, parked the car in her garage, and did not call authorities. After the impact, he became stuck in her windshield. ![]() Stuck is loosely based on a 2001 incident in which a woman hit a homeless man with her car. Still, the storyline and its presentation are unique enough that it's difficult not to be intrigued about where all this is going once it starts. That's not to say the movie fails - there are times when it is bitingly funny and times when its bloodiness can cause a wince and a shudder - but director Stuart Gordon is not adept at blending the two extremes into a cohesive whole. Stuck, like many in the thriller/comedy genre, has difficulty handling the tonal shifts between humor and suspense that exist within its framework.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |