Sneaking into theatres this weekend is The Ghost Writer, a new film by Roman Polanski. I say “sneaking” because thus far, the number of screens the film is playing on is paltry, compared to “bigger” films like Repo Men and The Bounty Hunter . It’s always interesting to me how studios and theatres decide on which films will launch in full distribution and which will show in limited release, particularly because The Bounty Hunter shows that it’s not a matter of film quality.
As a quick aside, let me just say right from the beginning that this won’t be an article which has anything to do with Roman Polanski’s personal life. If you’re not familiar with what I’m referring to, so much the better. Much like I loathe celebrity tabloid gossip, I have no interest in a film directors’ non-movie affairs. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s relationship status has no bearing on my decision to watch Mr. and Mrs. Smith, for instance, since it has nothing to do with the film. Rant concluded.
The Ghost Writer stars Ewan McGregor as a writer hired to pen the memoirs of a former British Prime Minister (played by Pierce Brosnan). From the beginning, something about this assignment is suspicious, as the writing assignment only popped up after the mysterious death of McGregor’s ghost-writing predecessor. Add in the fact that Brosnan’s obvious Tony Blair-ish character is being investigated for war crimes, and you’ve got a recipe for some excellent atmosphere – something Polanski is known to do very well.
The film has excellent pacing, for the most part. Zipping from scene to scene, it’s like Polanski is determined to get to the meat of the story and has no time for bloated scenes and rambling dialogue. Sharp writing with a rare wit colours each moment with a “get in-tell the story-get out” sort of style. Despite the lack of filler, however, the movie still runs a little long, and begins to lose steam for about 20 minutes during the film’s three quarter mark. Regardless, film-goers are likely to be engrossed by this movie’s storyline and probably won’t fault the film on time, which is otherwise very tight.
Solid performances by McGregor, Brosnan, Olivia Williams, and Tom Wilkinson keep the sharp mystery moving along and interesting. The characters are engaging and believable, and never sacrifice realism for the convenience of convoying certain plot points.
Incidentally, it’s nice to see a thriller built more around suspense and mood than explosions and cheap scares. Nothing jumps out at the screen in this flick. Thanks Polanski. Your respect for your audience and commitment to not insult their intelligence is noted and appreciated – unlike another similarly titled film illustrated below in a handy reference chart:
The Ghost Writer is one of this year’s better films so far. Though, in a pack of Remember Mes and The Bounty Hunters, it’s hard to say how much that’s saying.
