Fascination and mediocrity

Alexys 2021-12-03 08:01:45

I vaguely remember a description in "The Attitude of Chanel", saying that a man is deeply obsessed with Coco Chanel, always dreaming that one day he can completely destroy Chanel, and then step up to save her by himself. Of course, Chanel's life was splendid and brilliant, and he did not give the hero a chance to save the beauty. This new movie also talks about fashion designers, but the above-mentioned emotional and gender relations are reversed, and "Hero Saves the Beauty" becomes "Save the Beauty" (in the words "Let the Bullets Fly"). A female model who happened to be looked after by an aloof male tailor, in order to get the tailor's love, he will not hesitate to take care of him again.

The above two works both tell the mediocre fascination with the twisted genius, just as the composer Salieri in "The Biography of Mozart" admires Mozart, but he does not hesitate to ruin Mozart for this.

Chanel and Mozart have an embarrassing ability: they feel like spring breeze when they are happy, but they have the ability to make admirers feel worthless at any time. As the saying goes, mediocre people disturb themselves. The biggest annoyance that mediocre people can find in their relationships is trying to make geniuses fall in love with themselves. The heroine is awkward and careful, and makes a selfless effort for this.

In order to highlight the contrast between genius and mediocrity, the director did not hesitate to simplify all female roles. But I have to say that the performance of clumsiness and mediocrity is the outstanding feature of the heroine of this film: she shows the bodybuilding of a country girl when she walks, and the tone contains a certain stinging dullness. These consistent small treatments give a background. The fuzzy and self-conscious characters become interesting, cute, and believable. It's not easy to play against Dai-Lewis. In the narrow space provided by the director, she did it.

In contrast, I think the role of tailor is very flat. Day-Lewis filmed "Nine" a few years ago, and played a director who lost his inspiration. He was also the kind of role that seemed to be a gentleman with anxiety. At this time, playing a genius in another field, beauty is beautiful, but there is a sense of repetition in the role type. Of course, his performance level is still the same, the slightly curled mouth processing is like the expression left over from childhood, and it is very flavorful. But as a curtain call, this role is still a bit too light.

Perhaps the casting process of this great actor in his life is indeed a conscious autobiography. At the end, the biography hopes to be quiet, elegant, hateful, and a little tragic. This is understandable. The director is like an exclusive master tailor, tailoring Dai-Lewis to his own body, and the final result is undoubtedly exquisite: the 70mm film film casts on the screen with shimmering light, matching the winter night of Yorkshire, the selfish loneliness of the protagonist, and The erotic desire of a woman burning herself.

It is a pity that exquisiteness alone cannot bring touch. Whether it is the brief plot in the biography of Chanel or the extravagant description of Mozart's Biography, the dramatic tension between genius and mediocrity has been clearly stated. The film is nothing more than an inherent structure of gains and losses. If you compare watching a movie to attending a party, this film should be a well-known upper-level occasion, smart, delicate, and formal, but lacking passion and moving charm. Even the vulgarity of the heroine is part of the party: her behavior should be eye-catching, but unexpectedly docile and suitable in this room.

The AFI Cinema in Silver Spring, Maryland used 70mm film to show the film, highlighting the film’s exquisite/obsessive-compulsive temperament.

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Extended Reading

Phantom Thread quotes

  • Reynolds Woodcock: What precisely is the nature of my game?

  • Reynolds Woodcock: There is an air of quiet death in this house and I do not like the way it smells.