Shame (film)
Shame (Directed by Steve McQueen)/ 2011
Shame is a movie about sexual addiction. It is one of Steve McQueen’s three powerful movie collaborations with Michael Fassbender. It is minimalist, sad, and brilliant.
The main character, Brandon (played by Fassbender), and his sister Sissy (Carry Mulligan) lived an unhappy childhood that is barely spoken of. The result is two people struggling with a deep sense of personal unhappiness, which drives them towards addictive and self-destructive behavior.
Brandon engages in sexual frenzies whenever stress enters his life. He rarely seems to enjoy the experiences, but is a man caught in the spiral of addiction. The movie argues that sexual addiction is connected deeply with depression, and is triggered by stressful life events. Moreover, like other kinds of addictions, the addict ceases to enjoy the experiences, and sex merely turns into a way to numb psychic pain.
The most poignant part of the movie involves Brandon going on a date with an attractive and kindly woman from his work. He boasts arrogantly that he does not believe in relationships, and that his longest relationship was four months. She questions how he can have such a negative view towards relationships without ever experiencing one. We sense that he knows he is not telling the truth, and he is justifying addictive behavior through an ideology he does not actually believe.
He eventually takes his colleague back to a hotel room for sex, but cannot go through with it as he knows he will end up hurting her. He asks her to leave and rings a prostitute instead. He is shown as a man that knows what he is but has not figured out what to do about it.
This is not a movie that tries to give answers and cast judgment. It simply wants to explain. Some viewers will perceive this movie as a compassionate take on an illness while others will argue it as justification of a lack of willpower. McQueen presents us with a very realistic life story about where such addiction comes from and in general a fine piece of artistic realism.
Shame is a movie about sexual addiction. It is one of Steve McQueen’s three powerful movie collaborations with Michael Fassbender. It is minimalist, sad, and brilliant.The main character, Brandon (played by Fassbender), and his sister Sissy (Carry Mulligan) lived an unhappy childhood that is barely spoken of. The result is two people struggling with a deep sense of personal unhappiness, which drives them towards addictive and self-destructive behavior.
Brandon engages in sexual frenzies whenever stress enters his life. He rarely seems to enjoy the experiences, but is a man caught in the spiral of addiction. The movie argues that sexual addiction is connected deeply with depression, and is triggered by stressful life events. Moreover, like other kinds of addictions, the addict ceases to enjoy the experiences, and sex merely turns into a way to numb psychic pain.
The most poignant part of the movie involves Brandon going on a date with an attractive and kindly woman from his work. He boasts arrogantly that he does not believe in relationships, and that his longest relationship was four months. She questions how he can have such a negative view towards relationships without ever experiencing one. We sense that he knows he is not telling the truth, and he is justifying addictive behavior through an ideology he does not actually believe.
He eventually takes his colleague back to a hotel room for sex, but cannot go through with it as he knows he will end up hurting her. He asks her to leave and rings a prostitute instead. He is shown as a man that knows what he is but has not figured out what to do about it.
This is not a movie that tries to give answers and cast judgment. It simply wants to explain. Some viewers will perceive this movie as a compassionate take on an illness while others will argue it as justification of a lack of willpower. McQueen presents us with a very realistic life story about where such addiction comes from and in general a fine piece of artistic realism.
