Shame (Movie Review)

I can say flatly that Michael Fassbender gives a brave, honest portrayal in this dark, brutal, engaging film. In the movie "Shame", Mike portrays Brandon Sullivan, a sexually, hyperactive person who struggles with these urges of images of women. Deep down inside, he's a very insecure man that can't combat his increasingly difficult problem. He can't avoid his persistent problem at work, as tech personnel find gigabytes of smut on his hard drive, daily; though, the blame is put on his intern rather than himself. His workplace is hardly explained throughout the film and we never know what he does at his job. Also, for such an attractive guy, he has rarely given relationships a chance, due to his high dependency of "getting off"; so, when he goes on his date with one of his co-workers, his confidence is shaken and isn't into committment, which leaves his date to question his ideology of relationships as he's geniuely passive. His way of feeling better besides pornography is call girls to help him cope. The movie does a great job examining one man's struggle with his sexual prowess and those deep flaws he doesn't share with others. He eats, sleeps, and sees sex, in any cycle. He doesn't talk to his also troubled sister, played by Carey Mulligan and within that poisonous circle lies a deepening struggle between the two; especially, when it comes to Brandon's boss (James Badge Dale) that essentially destroys the modicum of whatever good there was from an otherwise tainted relationship. She tries to reconnect by calling him repeatedly, only for his estrained brother to never answer the phone. Brandon isn't comfortable with his sister because he claims that she's not dependable as well as being his "burden" throughout his life. However, the film doesn't discuss their childhood the viewer and it leaves that element vague with viewers; and, also a missed opportunity, too. Concerning Carey's role as Brandon's sister Sissy, I wish more of her story could've been further deconstructed since, she herself self-mutilated herself and has bad boyfriend issues, which we never see as an audience, only her deep longing for someone to have a mate. She sings as a job, but like Brandon, the problems are too much. The direction by Steve McQueen is superb and uses it to focus squarely on Fassbender's character. The one scene I enjoyed was him running on the sidewalks of New York to get away from his twitchy boss and his needy sister. It's in that very scene, he doesn't seem cluttered with his growing frustration, he can focus without ogling at women on the web; and, for once, we don't see him with his omnipresent scarf that he wears religiously. Plus, he doesn't have to hear his boss and sister fooling around. When it comes down to it, "Shame" is a character study of one person descent towards a dark place of porn and uncommitted to a fair relationship with women. The film is unafraid of being graphic; since, the film is rated NC-17; and, is filled with strong performances. It's worth a look, if you have an open mind and aren't grossed out by the film's salacious content. The film can be tedious because a lot of the film is subtle, despite its unhinged nature and, aside from being bare (excuse the pun), it can all get to be a bit repetitive with the main character routinely repeating the same things every day. It does tend to go on and on, occasionally. That aside, this is definitely worth a look, if you're into a film that isn't afraid to be what it is. I mean, the film is called "Shame", for Pete's sake.