VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Far From Heaven (2002)
QQQ1/2

Despite going home empty-handed at this year's Oscars (the movie earned four nominations), director Todd Haynes' visually sumptuous salute to the '50s melodramas of Douglas Sirk is still a winner in my book. Julianne Moore and Dennis Quaid star as a seemingly perfect couple whose gorgeous abode nestled in a panoply of multi-hued autumn trees looks like it came off the cover of a '50s-era Better Homes and Gardens. Their picture-perfect, glossy lifestyle masks a variety of problems, of course, most of which were far too scandalous to have been addressed in one of Sirk's morality plays. Quaid is struggling with his burgeoning sexuality as a gay man, while Moore tries to come to grips with her growing affection for their African-American gardener (Dennis Haysbert). Despite terrific performances from all the leads and gorgeous, color-saturated cinematography, the film still maintains its emotional distance, never quite allowing audiences to feel for its characters as much as they could. But that could all be a part of Haynes' fairy-tale filmmaking style. Check it out and decide for yourself. The DVD includes director commentary, making-of featurette, interviews, "Anatomy of a Scene" and widescreen format.

VIDEO REVIEW ARCHIVE