Shattered (01/25/10)

Movie of the Day (1/25/10)- Shattered (1991)
starring Tom Berenger, Gretta Scacchi, Corbin Bernsen, Joanne Whalley-Kilmer, and Bob Hoskins
directed by Wolfgang Petersen

-For those who have heard the term neo-noir, but never had a decent enough illustration of it, Shattered is a perfect example. Although many (including perhaps myself) will press the point the Polanski classic Chinatown remains the quintessential neo-noir offering due to its stark closeness to the original blueprint of the anti-hero/avg. joe finding himself entangled in plots involving murder brought on by a seductive, yet dangerous woman (aka the femme fatale). Yet this 1991 offering from well-established director Wolfgang Petersen is a more than worthy addition to this sub-genre of film.

Shattered opens on a deserted mountainous road where is a car is speeding along, swerving back and forth. After several very near misses, the car finally crashes into a railing and falls off a cliff. As the car plumets to the ground we notice a woman being tossed out of the vehicle, tumbling down the cliff as well. While the car continues to make its way down, we notice a man behind the wheel who is trapped inside; helpless as the car goes down. It is soon discovered that the couple in the car are Dan and Judith Merrick (Berenger and Scacchi); a well-to-do husband and wife from San Francisco. Judith escapes with various injuries including a broken arm while Dan not only requires complete facial reconstruction, but also needs help regaining his memory, which has been erased due to the accident. When the two return home, Dan discovers that his wife, his business partner (Bernsen), his neighbor (Whalley-Kilmer), and a private detective (Hoskins) all hold clues to what had occurred in Dan's life before the wreck and that what seemed like an accident, might not have been at all.

From the getgo, Shattered is shrouded in mystery as the audience somehow instinctively knows not to take anything they see as the truth and must learn right along with Dan about the world he has found himself in. The plot itself, adapted from the novel by Richard Neely, provides a requisite number of twists to ensure that the proceedings never become tiresome and mundane. At times however, it seems that the plot be required to stand still while characters such as Jenny, the wife of Jeb, Dan's business partner tries to rekindle a past affair or when Jeb takes time to reintroduce Dan to their business. Thankfully these moments take up very little screentime in favor of the real matter at hand. Many questions arise during Shattered: why did Dan feel the need to hire a detective prior to his accident? what is troubling Judith so much that she dashes off mysteriously several times throughout the course of the film, who is the mysterious stranger from Dan's past that keeps re-appearing, and most importantly, who was Dan Merrick before his accident?? All these questions plague Shattered, leading up to an ending that's truly unforseen and well worth the wait!!

One critic who reviewed Shattered observed: "people don't count as much as surprises in this film." Taking that very notion into consideration, Shattered lends itself even more into the vein of neo-noir. In many such films, it is often found that the characters seen on screen are oftentimes unremarkable and clearly one-dimensional. You more or less know thier motives, beliefs and attitudes. In most genres this lack of characterization would seem unforgivable. Yet here it works for the sheer reason that the plot and the many facets it contains, needs to be much larger than the characters within the film. It should be noted that the cast as a whole, play their parts well. Each one falls into the archtype of character that the genre expects them to be and do so admirably. Hoskins in particular is a standout as the detective/pet shop owner. Moreover, the look of Shattered greatly reflects the dark and moody tones of original film noir where most scenes were shrouded in darkness. Here, with its lush dark lighting, accompanying California locale, and greatly-plotted story, Shattered provides the perfect look and feel for a classic exercise in neo-noir.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RVhiJ_ds2U