Chéri

Stephen Frears' latest film Chéri reunites him with his Dangerous Liaisons associates, screenwriter Christopher Hampton and Michelle Pfeiffer. Although this film is neither her best screen performance nor Frears' best work, by a long shot. Coming off of his Academy Award nomination in 2006 for his work on The Queen, set very high standards for anything Frears produces. The same expectations hold true for Hampton, having actually won an Oscar for Dangerous Liaisons and also most recently being nominated for his adaptation of Ian MacEwan's Atonement. Hampton, however, fails here to conquer the same kind of character driven brilliance of those aforementioned films. Though Chéri struggles to foster a meaningful plot, Frears manages to create an astonishing piece of film art by employing wonderfully elaborate sets and ravishing costumes. Audiences can expect the same kind of visual magnificence found in his prior films, even though the storyline itself is weak.

The film opens with a scene of Kathy Bates, who plays Chéri's neurotic mother, Madame Charlotte Peloux. She commissions Léa de Lonval, Pfeiffer's character, to "guide" her son on his journey to manhood out of her growing concern for his frivolous nature. Little did she expect that Lea would fall for the young innocent. Charlotte's plea to Léa is endearing and genuine. She proclaims that, "He pays no attention to me anymore, but I'm sure he'll listen to anything you have to say." The only oddity that I found with this plot point was the idea that a woman, in this case Lea, would be the best candidate to mentor a young boy, Chéri. It just seems strange, considering both the time period and the culture. Bates revisits her over-utilized role as the "Mother Hen", which we have seen her do so many times before. As much as I esteem her as an actress, Bates does not bring anything to the character of Madam Peloux. In fact, I have not seen Bates truly bring much to the silver screen in quite some time, probably not since About Schmidt.

The main character of Chéri Peloux, portrayed by newcomer Rupert Friend, is a naive and blameless dupe. Despite his attempt to be loyal and considerate of both his mother and Lea, he still comes off as nothing more than an overindulged impudent. You don't feel for him because he's not convincing of his own feelings. I believe Lea sums Chéri up best when she says, "I can't criticize his character, mainly because he doesn't seem to have one." The innocent mouse routine that he sustains throughout the film becomes tiresome and dull, especially once you realize that the cat isn't even really chasing him. You begin to question whether or not he really does love Lea at all. Can someone so innocent possible know what it means to love? Friend takes a minimalist approach to his character and fulfills the physical attributes of Chéri, but nothing more.

Despite a mediocre script, Michelle Pfeiffer's performance as the heroin Léa de Lonval is nonetheless brilliant. We have not seen much of Pfeiffer as of late, but I respect that she has been more selective about the roles she takes on. She captures the very essence of how an older woman of forty-nine would handle love. There's a wonderful seen where Chéri tries to convince her that they can continue to carry on the way they always have, where Léa remains grounded in the reality that their relationship as it was, shall never be the same. He seems to be more disappointed than heartbroken, that she is not mournful of their break-up. She asserts that he can't expect her to "curl up and die" and reminds him that he is "not the only young man I've said goodbye to". It isn't until she is alone that she truly realizes just how much she did love him. Pfeiffer's emotional portrayal of Léa's heartache is stunning and wrenching all at once. And she carries this film almost entirely on her own.

There are some absolutely vivid scenes throughout the film. The settings alone are breathtaking and possibly make up for rest of the film's inadequacies. It reminds me a great deal of last year's eighteenth century period film The Duchess, that too came up short overall but had spectacular art direction and costumes. Chéri's Art Director Denis Schnegg really struck a high note with his wonderfully elaborate sets. Every single scene is filled with dramatic details from the floors to the ceiling. Even the plants in the conservatory scene are luminous and overpowering. Schnegg spared nothing when it came to the set details in Chéri and as a result, we are visually engrossed by the film. The costumes of all the characters are also lavishly memorable, overwhelming the audience even more than the actors do. Léa's waredrobe in particular is lush and radiates her inner turmoil with colors that compliment her emotions well. The same is true for Kathy Bates' jolly character, who is often sporting metallic yellows and browns. I tip my hat to the film's Costume Designers (Denis Schnegg and Consolata Boyle) for contributing about the only redeeming part of this entire picture.

Overall Chéri did not execute well. Pfieffer made the most of her character, but the story itself was limiting. The characters are not appealing enough for anyone to really care about them. They show very little emotional vulnerability, despite the obvious situational problems of love and circumstance. Like all tales of forbidden desires, the outcome is usually tragic and predictable. The story also drops off very abruptly and in the end, you are left with a dissatisfying feeling. After sitting through an hour and a half of innocuous conversations and directionless events in the lives of these aristocrats, you don't even care about what happens next. Movies that end with 'cliffhangers' should leave the audience wanting more. Chéri just doesn't accomplish that.

Rating: ★ 1/2
Bottom Line: Not even the visually stunning costumes can disguise this very flat film.