Sleeping Beauty

So, I had heard about this movie all the way back when they were casting for the lead role and everyone had an opinion. Well originally Mia Wasikowska was cast but was replaced by Emily Browning when she dropped out to do Jane Eyre. I'm a fan of Browning's as I was one of the few who really enjoyed Sucker Punch and her terrific performance in it. I had however pretty much forgotten about this movie until I saw it last night while perusing the Netflix inventory. The movie comes from Australia from first time writer/director Julia Leigh.

The story, which shouldn't be confused with the recent trend of adapting fairy tales to make them more modern or dark, revolved around a young college student, played by Browing, who holds various jobs seemingly to pay for her expenses due to a codependent absent mother. She gets pulled into a world of secret perversions of the rich who desire lingerie-clad caterers and then ultimately a sleeping girl to do as they wish in bed. Browning finds herself caught up in this world and the audience is there for the ride.

Well I believe that Julia Leigh's favorite directors must be David Lynch or even Von Trier. The story was not as extreme as any of theirs and did have a linear storyline, it just raised more questions than answers. The atmosphere was dark and Browning's character was quite complex even though she kept a reserved facade. The sexual perversions of her clients were met head on in the script and was almost hard to watch at times, but through the cinematography it somehow kept it's air of elegance. Quite an oxymoron. While watching the movie, I was looking for answers and getting slightly confused. It was only after finishing the movie and looking back in retrospect was I able to see all of the questions and subtle clues that were given but left mostly up for our own interpretation.

The camera movements were smooth and the lighting soft and warm. It really did create a dramatic elegance to the film which contrasted greatly with the world the character was diving into. I think it was a smart choice.

Browning deserves loads of respect for this role. She was completely and utterly vulnerable in most of her scenes. A couple of the bedroom scenes were hard to watch and I can only imagine the bravery needed to do that. Besides the obvious, she somehow was able to pull off her performance with a cool and unemotional exterior while showing the audience that she has complex inner turmoil from subtle movements or actions. Her performance was definitely the pinnacle of the movie. The other actors showed bravery as well and I'll give some props to the old men who bared all for this movie.

Well, this movie is without a doubt not for everyone. There's actually no sex scenes in the movie, rather loads of nudity and perverse situations. Aside from the obvious, the movie also doesn't really answer any of the questions that it poses, instead it gives subtle clues that are left to your interpretation. It would make a great film to dissect. I think there were a lot of smart choices made in the movie and Browning's performance should add greatly to her resume. My admiration for the elements of the movie didn't match my entertainment as a whole. It's almost as if I enjoyed each element on its own but not necessarily the way it fit as a whole. That makes perfect sense, right? "The fear of death is the world's biggest hoax".