Stometer Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

urbanlegend23 The main thing that pushed me to finally watch "Affliction" was to check out the Oscar-winning performance by James Coburn. Correct me if I'm wrong, but at the time, this legendary actor scooping up Best Supporting Actor over more the more heavily favored Ed Harris ("The Truman Show") was something of a surprise. Personally, I would've still selected Harris on that ballot, but there can be no doubt that Coburn's skin-crawling turn as an alcoholic, abusive father is also deserving of recognition. He makes this character – who could've been an absolute cartoon – feel completely three-dimensional, and shares a palpable familial chemistry with on-screen son Nick Nolte (also excellent). Coburn's imposing and unpredictable presence ensures the film is infinitely more interesting every time he appears on screen.Director Paul Schrader establishes a believable small town atmosphere in the film's first hour. The snow-coated, winter setting adds an atmosphere of detachment and bleakness entirely fitting to the journey of the main character.However, I'd be lying if I didn't say I found "Affliction" to be an overly slow-paced film, lacking in narrative drive. Even the 'murder mystery' aspect (along with it's "is-that-it?" resolution) does not do much for the plot. There is also heavy-handed and unnecessary voice-over narration. Bizarrely it is delivered by Willem Dafoe, who doesn't show up in the film for quite some time, and when he does, doesn't leave much of an impression. It would've been better to omit the narration altogether.I wouldn't entirely dissuade audiences from checking out "Affliction" – but it is likely to frustrate the mainstream audience expecting more of a murder-mystery thriller. Schrader has opted instead for an introspective character piece, which is certainly going to satisfy some (including, as it happened, the critics, who lavished praise upon this film), but frankly it is going to flat-out bore many viewers.

cathryngoodman-13956 The affliction referred to in the title of this film is clearly intended to be interpreted as violence. Wade's brother makes this clear when he tells him that he has not been affected by Wade's "affliction." And yes, we see extreme verbal abuse along with "mild" physical violence in their father, Ben. And yes, we see a pent-up violence in Wade. Without condoning or encouraging murder, consider an alternate interpretation...As an alternative, is Wade's passivity and his refusal to fight back against his abusive father truly admirable or healthy? Is passivity the sane condition from which Wade falls into madness? Or is his continued acceptance of abuse a mental illness? Consider the scenes when Ben abuses young Wade and his mother; don't we want to stop Ben? Don't we want Wade to stand up to his father? And later, when Wade is a grown man, don't we want him to protect himself and Margie and his mother from Ben's continued abuse? Instead he takes it; he still acts like a child who is under the control of a parent.An alternative interpretation would be that Wade's character flaw is not that he is drawn to violence but that he can't stand up against violence. His unhealthy desire for his father's love keeps him trapped in an abusive relationship. Perhaps it is not an affliction to want to fight back against Ben's sickness. Ben is cruel and enjoys being cruel. That is an illness that deserves to be stopped, preferably without violence, but still it deserves to be stopped.If Wade hadn't stuffed his anger so far down his entire life, if he hadn't let himself be a victim for so long, perhaps he could have found a non-violent response to his father's abuse. Perhaps he could have followed the more healthy path his brother did - he could have left his father and lived his own life.As a comparison, consider abuse in a marital relationship.We would call the Wade-type partner an enabler of the abusive Ben-type partner. We would counsel the enabler/victim Wde to develop a sense of self-worth and self-actualization in order to leave the abusive relationship. Right? We would not encourage the enabler to continue to accept the abuse endlessly. Perhaps it is Wade's inability to stand up to his father in a healthy way that is his true affliction.After a lifetime of struggle, it would seem that the only way for the abusive relationship to end is for one of them to die. The two are locked in a metaphorical fight-to-the-death as Ben abuses Wade and Wade stays around to take it. If Wade continued in the path of an enabler, if he continued on the same path without character growth, he would kill himself to allow his father to win. Instead Wade finally finds the strength within himself to react to the abuse. Isn't that a logical, i.e. sane, response? Again, without condoning murder, don't we think the old bastard deserved it? Isn't it possible that by finally reacting to Ben's abuse, Wade has discovered his true self rather than losing it? For example, consider two interpretations of the murder scene. As Wade aims the rifle at his fallen father, we see a flicker of emotion in his face when he suspects his father is already dead. Then, when he discovers that his father is in fact dead, his expression relaxes into something else. One interpretation would be that the first expression is disappointment that he has already killed his father and doesn't get to shoot him in a more intentionally violent way. Then. the reaction after realizing his father is dead could be the joy of having embraced his innate violence.But Wade's initial blow to Ben's head is more reflexive than premeditated. And he doesn't actually shoot the gun even though he is still in a rage. He looks through the site but he doesn't shoot. He hesitates. Shooting the gun would be an act of intentional violence and symbolic of a descent into violence. But he doesn't do it. Perhaps the first reaction is not one of disappointment but of concern for what he has done. Although he hates his father, he could be appalled and frightened to find that he has killed him. It is possible that the second expression is one of peace. Not the peace of being violent but the peace of being free of his tormentor. Peace at being free to move on from the childish state his father has kept him in into a state of self-actualization and growth; of adulthood.Consider also the sub-plot of Twombly. The murder of Jack is also represented as a descent of the rationality of Wade and his descent into madness. And yet the writers have set up the story so neatly and the evidence so clearly that it seems that Wade's "hallucinations" about Twombly's death are rational. The characters look and speak as if they are guilty, too. Again, without condoning murder, isn't it possible to interpret Wade's murder of Jack as a rational action in the face of the evidence? Of course murder is inexcusable in real life but as an artistic device isn't it possible that Wade's self-actualization allows him to finally stand up to the namby-pamby Gordon figure? To stand up to the actual and real conspiracy? In the final voice-over, we learn that Twombly's son-in-law does, in fact, destroy the town for his own financial gain. Isn't it possible that this supports Wade's conspiracy theory? Again, while not condoning violence, instead of thinking that Wade slinks off in disgrace after his violent behavior, it is possible to envision a stronger, healthier, and self-actualized Wade who leaves town with a sense of his own worth; that despite his guilt over his violent actions that he becomes more in tune with his true emotions and is able to enter into healthy relationships.Just food for thought...

bandw In a small New Hampshire town Wade (Nick Nolte), a middle-aged man, is unable to gain much purchase on life. Twice divorced from the same woman he is unable to connect with his daughter, at those times that he has parental rights to see her. As the town cop he is hardly a notch above Barney Fife, drinking and smoking pot on the job and beholden to the town mayor. Most everything Wade tries to do turns sour. A central event in the movie is a hunting accident involving the death of a wealthy out-of-state union man who had been accompanied by a young local guide. Wade suspects that the death may have been a murder and his investigation stirs up conflicts with the local power structure. Wade had some theories about the shooting but he did not even conduct a thorough investigation of the crime scene, like the position of the body, the angle of the entry wound, the consistency of the story from the hunter's guide--things thatwould have gone a long way in solving some of the event's mysteries. Even more to the point, there was no search for the bullet that killed the hunter-- that would at least have proved whether the bullet came from the hunter's own gun, and thus have ruled out the theory of an independent shooter. When we meet Wade's father Glenn (James Coburn) we understand a lot about why Wade is the way he is. Glenn is a man who takes out his life's frustrations and failures by drinking and dominating those around him. Coburn gives a remarkable performance--he is physically and emotionally intimidating. My anxiety levels went up every time he was on the screen, and even when not on screen he cast a shadow over the proceedings. My reactions to him were probably similar to Wade's and I could feel what it might be like to live in the shadow of such a man. The score accentuated my anxiety levels. Actors are interesting--how could James Coburn get himself to play such a despicable character so convincingly? I do have to admire his acting here. Willem Defoe turns up as Wade's more stable brother Rolfe. Rolfe had the good sense to escape the toxic family environment of his youth. Unfortunately Wade did not have the spine to stand up to the withering force of his father's personality. Whenever Wade was around his father he reacted to him like he was dealing with a vicious feral animal.Pretty far from the end I had to think that things were not going to end well. The only spark in Wade's life was a relation with a local waitress (Sissy Spacek), but the humiliations Wade had suffered finally culminated in uncontrolled self-destructive behavior.There is an epilogue that wraps things up a bit, but I am not sure of the truth of the comment made there that Wade is an example of someone who broke the chain of abuse; I think his daughter was pretty scared of him. Growing up in such a household as Wade would indeed make future relationships difficult, particularly living in the same small town with such a father.

Mere Humsafar All along the movie. you know there is some mystery, something unexplained.. but you are still surprised at the end.. But that is only a part of the story.. the movie shows so truly some of the human emotions and sufferings, you feel it could be you in place of Wade.. Any of us could have done exactly what Wade did in his life.. any of us could be subject to the reactions Wade was subject to..from a wife, from a daughter, from a brother.. even from a lover.. emotions can run deeper , deeper and deeper.. The excellent photography of the forest, the snow, the snowfall is beautiful and bleak at the same time.. The movie once again shows that the anguish and angst of man can be same in a cool environs of a small town as it can be in a restless and explosive metropolis.. Nick Nolte is one those fine actors, who really gets into the skin of the character.. there are unforgettable scenes (like the tooth..ex..) Unfortunate that he did not win the Oscar.