Cast: Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried, Liam Neeson
Catherine (Moore) is a confident and strong-willed doctor with a seemingly perfect life: her handsome husband, David (Neeson), is a respected professor; her talented son, Michael, is a prodigious pianist; and her beautiful suburban home is the envy of all her friends. But when Catherine begins to suspect David of infidelity, her confident shell is crushed, revealing a timid and insecure middle-aged woman who questions her own sexual appeal.
Catherine cannot bear the mistrust she feels towards her husband, and would rather know that he is cheating than suspect it for the rest of her life. And so she enlists the services of Chloe (Seyfried), a starry-eyed and ethereal young escort, to seduce her husband and prove his waywardness. Over a series of meetings, Chloe reveals the sordid details of her afternoon trysts with David; and it is Catherine’s reaction that creates the main source of drama in this film… she is devastated, of course, but she is also strangely compelled by Chloe’s sexuality.
Catherine is so engrossed that she fails to notice the inconsistencies in Chloe’s stories; and as Catherine and Chloe’s relationship heats up, Chloe’s fragile mental state becomes more and more apparent, and the safety of Catherine and her family becomes increasingly jeopardised.
Egoyan’s treatment of Chloe is reminiscent of Hitchcock’s carefully created ‘blondes’ in ‘Marnie’ and ‘Vertigo’. She is a floating image of haunting beauty, and Amanda Seyfried’s performance is ethereal and captivating. Egoyan works hard to prevent Chloe seeming like a seedy prostitute or a rebellious ‘Élisa’. She is a Noirish creature who seems out of place in this world. The only thing preventing her from being a more memorable film ‘vamp’ is the lack of any really engaging character motivation.
The film works hard to achieve a suspenseful tone and a thrilling psychological undercurrent, but it is to the detriment of any really believable and engaging characters. Seyfried and Neeson are the biggest victims; their characters lack any depth and it is difficult to believe in them let alone empathise with them.
Catherine is the only character with any real depth and nuance, and Moore (as if it need be mentioned) latches on to this deeply troubled woman and creates a rich and absorbing heroine. She is the picture of professional perfection, studied and aesthetic, calm and precise, but with a flustered vulnerability piercing through the surface in times of desperation.
In the end, not even Seyfried’s haunting and at times terrifying gaze can persuade us that this damaged girl poses any real threat to our heroine. The film’s ending is a damp squib, and for all Egoyan’s hard work creating a visually and tonally stunning film; it is difficult to feel any emotional connection to the story, and even Egoyan fans will leave the cinema unmoved.
Catherine (Moore) is a confident and strong-willed doctor with a seemingly perfect life: her handsome husband, David (Neeson), is a respected professor; her talented son, Michael, is a prodigious pianist; and her beautiful suburban home is the envy of all her friends. But when Catherine begins to suspect David of infidelity, her confident shell is crushed, revealing a timid and insecure middle-aged woman who questions her own sexual appeal.
Catherine cannot bear the mistrust she feels towards her husband, and would rather know that he is cheating than suspect it for the rest of her life. And so she enlists the services of Chloe (Seyfried), a starry-eyed and ethereal young escort, to seduce her husband and prove his waywardness. Over a series of meetings, Chloe reveals the sordid details of her afternoon trysts with David; and it is Catherine’s reaction that creates the main source of drama in this film… she is devastated, of course, but she is also strangely compelled by Chloe’s sexuality.
Catherine is so engrossed that she fails to notice the inconsistencies in Chloe’s stories; and as Catherine and Chloe’s relationship heats up, Chloe’s fragile mental state becomes more and more apparent, and the safety of Catherine and her family becomes increasingly jeopardised.
Egoyan’s treatment of Chloe is reminiscent of Hitchcock’s carefully created ‘blondes’ in ‘Marnie’ and ‘Vertigo’. She is a floating image of haunting beauty, and Amanda Seyfried’s performance is ethereal and captivating. Egoyan works hard to prevent Chloe seeming like a seedy prostitute or a rebellious ‘Élisa’. She is a Noirish creature who seems out of place in this world. The only thing preventing her from being a more memorable film ‘vamp’ is the lack of any really engaging character motivation.
The film works hard to achieve a suspenseful tone and a thrilling psychological undercurrent, but it is to the detriment of any really believable and engaging characters. Seyfried and Neeson are the biggest victims; their characters lack any depth and it is difficult to believe in them let alone empathise with them.
Catherine is the only character with any real depth and nuance, and Moore (as if it need be mentioned) latches on to this deeply troubled woman and creates a rich and absorbing heroine. She is the picture of professional perfection, studied and aesthetic, calm and precise, but with a flustered vulnerability piercing through the surface in times of desperation.
In the end, not even Seyfried’s haunting and at times terrifying gaze can persuade us that this damaged girl poses any real threat to our heroine. The film’s ending is a damp squib, and for all Egoyan’s hard work creating a visually and tonally stunning film; it is difficult to feel any emotional connection to the story, and even Egoyan fans will leave the cinema unmoved.
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