Subject: REVIEW: MARY REILLY

From: [email-masked] (Michael J. Legeros)
Date: 27 Feb 1996 15:19:04 GMT

MARY REILLY
                       A film review by Michael John Legeros
                        Copyright 1996 Michael John Legeros
 
(Tri Star)
Directed by    Stephen Frears
Written by     Christopher Hampton, from the novel by Valerie Martin
Cast           Julia Roberts, John Malkovich, Michael Gambon, Glenn
               Close
MPAA Rating    "R"
Running Time   118 minutes
Reviewed at    Six Forks Station Cinemas, Raleigh, NC (21FEB96)   

==

     The swooping shots across darkened rooftops suggest a very Tim 
Burton movie, but, alas, no caped crusader descends to save *this* 
film. Instead, it's a skeletal housemaid (Julia Roberts) who must bear 
witness to this unfortunate retelling of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." 
For a few, fleeting, maddening moments, director Stephen Frears 
(DANGEROUS LIAISONS) gets everything just right-- the tone, the 
colors, the characters; all the ingredients to make a most-powerful 
potion out of Valerie Martin's best-selling novel.  Yet it fizzles 
too quickly; the volatile mixture losing potency from the very first 
scene.

     Casting is a large part of the problem.  The story all but collap-
ses around Ms. Roberts-- she doesn't have the range for this kind of 
drama.  Her accent also comes and goes, though it's nowhere near as 
glaring as the total lack of chemistry between her and co-star John 
Malkovich.  (He looks the same in both of his roles-- an incredible 
fact that's missed by everyone in the story!)  The very British 
supporting cast-- including Michael Gambon and George Cole-- gives 
credibility to the smaller parts.  Glenn Close also appears as a 
Madam that the Good Doctor calls upon.  Her performance is as close 
to intentional camp as the movie ever gets and-- as a bonus-- offers 
a likely peek at her upcoming Cruella De Ville in the live-action 101 
DALMANTIONS.

     The biggest botch in MARY REILLY is suspense:  there is none.  No 
terror, no tension; nothing.  Without any weight, wit, or wonder to 
propel the story, the viewer is left with little more to do than pay 
attention to the period detail, a few buckets of blood, and Stuart 
Craig's fabulously dreary production design.  All of which gets old 
after about an hour, at which point I recommend leaving.  (The pacing 
in the second-half is especially abominable.  If you *do* stick it 
through, your sole reward is a half-hokey special effect depicting 
the infamous transformation.)  

     Mr. Frears reportedly recut his film several times, missing 
several release dates in the process.  (Obviously, no one advised him 
to throw up his hands and just turn the whole damned thing over to Mel 
Brooks.  Blucher!)  MARY REILLY is the second Robert Louis Stevenson 
story of the month, after MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND.  Perhaps Mr. Frears 
should consult with Brian Henson on future projects.  I daresay that 
even Ms. Piggy is a better choice for a certain roles than Julia 
Roberts.  And she does have a great chop! 

     Grade: D-

--
Mike Legeros - Raleigh, NC 
[email-masked] (h) - [email-masked] (w)
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