My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?We look back on those moments leading up to a tragic event and ask ourselves how things got to the point they did. Could we have done something different, and could we have prevented the incident. It's a hard question, because we think of when someone we care about makes a life-altering decision, one with fatal consequences, and we want to believe that there was nothing we could do and that we could have done something at the same time. But all that's left is the regrettable aftermath.
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My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? is the story of Brad McCullam (Michael Shannon), a troubled man who has lived under the domineering control of his mother (Grace Zabriskie). Brad is regarded by his fiance, Ingrid (Chloe Sevigny) as troubled and depressed, and attached to his mother to the point where he will not even move away from her more than a few houses. His former theater director, Lee (Udo Kier), considers him a gifted--if troublesome--actor, but one who is too difficult to work with. Maybe these close relationships of Brad--any of them--should have made some effort to assuage the trouble within Brad, one which manifests itself in the form of some combination of religious mania and an extreme identification with his dramatic persona of Orestes, from the Greek play of the same name. Upon an unfortunate rafting trip to Peru with a group of extreme white water canoe rafters, Brad claims that he heard a voice in his head instruct him to not make that perilous rafting trip, a wise decision which spared him his life, since his travelling companions were not so lucky. From that point on--according to Ingrid--no one could tell him what to do; it was as though he were compelled by a force beyond his former self, and he was driven to seek some kind of deeper meaning in life. All of this is conveyed over time--much of it told by flashback and testimony from those closest to Brad--to Detective Hank Havenhurst (Willem Dafoe), since from the onset of the story Brad has locked himself in his house, claiming to have taken hostages; his mother has been run through with an antique sword of Brad's at a friend's house across the street. Whatever change Brad experienced in Peru was the catalyst which caused him to alter his world view to such an extent, that in the end he felt compelled to end his mother's life, an action mirroring the Greek play he was to star in. All we can do is rewind the cryptic events in Brad's life via Detective Havenhurst, trying to follow the trail of crumbs to the center of this labyrinth.
Directed by Werner Herzog--and produced by David Lynch--My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? is a story about a man searching, but not necessarily about a man who has found anything, but looks for whatever it is that can give him a sense of purpose. The film is staffed by a talented cast and shot quickly and with a slim budget, the idea being that an entertaining film can still be created without a bloated production when a lean one will do as well or better. So what do we think? I think that the film is exceptional in its atypical narrative structure; where a more common "hostage film" might draw out some more plot-intrinsic events, like "who killed who" and all that, by establishing the murderer, the weapon, and the situation first, we have the opportunity to reach some level of conjecture, letting our imaginations run a little while before we get the chance to piece it together with more completeness...just as Detective Havenhurst must do following his arrival on the scene. I suppose it's possible that Brad was touched by some divine presence in Peru, one which has led him through these moments in his life, but that seems unlikely. What is more likely is that Brad is suffering from some kind of depression, although neither his mom, Ingrid, or even Lee have any real idea how to help him. Early on--describing his father as his "mom's husband"--he doesn't seem to feel any real attachment to his dad, but later asks Ingrid to accompany him to the Naval hospital, where he claims his "father" died. Why the sudden change? Perhaps Brad feels more connected with his father than before, perhaps spurred on by his commitment and obsession with Orestes and the story about a man who must kill his mother with a sword to free his curse and the curse of his bloodline. It's possible that Brad has felt that after Peru he has his true calling...but here too, it is more likely that he simply has lost all direction, and that's why he's become so obsessed with Orestes, because he doesn't know what else to really identify with. Brad's mother is demanding, intrusive when he and Ingrid wish to spend time listening to music, barging in without knocking, armed with cookies, and passive-aggressively waiting for a "thank you" before retreating. She force feeds Brad Jell-O and attempts to inflict guilt upon him as she highlights various musical instruments she had bought for him which he never uses; but is that enough to kill her? No, but then Brad exhibits a variety of other depressed symptoms which go unchecked, so this fertile ground is enough for Brad to cultivate his inability to truly grow beyond his mother's command. And in the end, Brad's last plea to prevent his desperate act for the self goes unanswered, too. Poor Brad...in his mind, he will be forever running with those ostriches.
Recommended for: Fans of a psychological crime story, a puzzle which does not allow for any concrete answer as to the whys and wherefores. And based on true events, the authentic street scenes and such give the film a wonderful realism.
Directed by Werner Herzog--and produced by David Lynch--My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? is a story about a man searching, but not necessarily about a man who has found anything, but looks for whatever it is that can give him a sense of purpose. The film is staffed by a talented cast and shot quickly and with a slim budget, the idea being that an entertaining film can still be created without a bloated production when a lean one will do as well or better. So what do we think? I think that the film is exceptional in its atypical narrative structure; where a more common "hostage film" might draw out some more plot-intrinsic events, like "who killed who" and all that, by establishing the murderer, the weapon, and the situation first, we have the opportunity to reach some level of conjecture, letting our imaginations run a little while before we get the chance to piece it together with more completeness...just as Detective Havenhurst must do following his arrival on the scene. I suppose it's possible that Brad was touched by some divine presence in Peru, one which has led him through these moments in his life, but that seems unlikely. What is more likely is that Brad is suffering from some kind of depression, although neither his mom, Ingrid, or even Lee have any real idea how to help him. Early on--describing his father as his "mom's husband"--he doesn't seem to feel any real attachment to his dad, but later asks Ingrid to accompany him to the Naval hospital, where he claims his "father" died. Why the sudden change? Perhaps Brad feels more connected with his father than before, perhaps spurred on by his commitment and obsession with Orestes and the story about a man who must kill his mother with a sword to free his curse and the curse of his bloodline. It's possible that Brad has felt that after Peru he has his true calling...but here too, it is more likely that he simply has lost all direction, and that's why he's become so obsessed with Orestes, because he doesn't know what else to really identify with. Brad's mother is demanding, intrusive when he and Ingrid wish to spend time listening to music, barging in without knocking, armed with cookies, and passive-aggressively waiting for a "thank you" before retreating. She force feeds Brad Jell-O and attempts to inflict guilt upon him as she highlights various musical instruments she had bought for him which he never uses; but is that enough to kill her? No, but then Brad exhibits a variety of other depressed symptoms which go unchecked, so this fertile ground is enough for Brad to cultivate his inability to truly grow beyond his mother's command. And in the end, Brad's last plea to prevent his desperate act for the self goes unanswered, too. Poor Brad...in his mind, he will be forever running with those ostriches.
Recommended for: Fans of a psychological crime story, a puzzle which does not allow for any concrete answer as to the whys and wherefores. And based on true events, the authentic street scenes and such give the film a wonderful realism.