Revolutionary Road

Revolutionary Road

By Jonathan Fisher, January 24th, 2009


Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road is based on a book written in 1961 and is set in the mid-1950s, but expresses despair and sadness that resonate even stronger nearly fifty years later. It tells the story of a couple building their American Dream, all the while knowing that it is not really what they want. But what do they want? They don't really know that either. Mendes also directed American Beauty ten years ago, a film that covers similar territory, but Revolutionary Road takes an altogether more pessimistic look at life in the American suburbs.

The couple is Frank and April Wheeler (Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet). The film bypasses their courting period, showing us their initial introduction at a party before thrusting us into the middle of an argument between the not-so-comfortably married couple. April wants to be an actress, but is only in plays that even her husband critiques as "hardly a triumph". Frank works as a salesman at an agency in New York City, commuting daily from their perfect Connecticut home. He follows in the footsteps of his father, who worked at the same agency for decades, but when Frank asks a member of the company's upper brass if he remembers his father, he is met with a blank stare.

Kathy Bates plays the realtor who found April and Frank's perfect house. She has a son who has been institutionalised, and asks the Wheelers if they would be interested in meeting him. "It'd be good for him to meet a nice couple like you." April agrees, and the Wheelers find themselves entertaining the realtor, her husband, and her 'insane' son John (Michael Shannon). In a rare moment of drifting into obvious symbolism, the insane son is the only person who reads the situation as it is, mercilessly mocking April and Frank for the facade of their apparently perfect life. Michael Shannon was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his role as John just a few days ago, and he deserves it. The character may be a slight contrivance, but Shannon's performance is not -- he plays him with great force and desperation. He is only in the film for three scenes, but they were one of my lasting memories from the movie.

April has an idea to bring the couple out of their rut. They'll move to Paris -- she'll support the family by working as a translator with the embassy while Frank takes time off to work out what he really wants to do with his life. "What about the kids?" Frank asks, almost as an afterthought. The children in their family aren't characters, but are just another part of their surburban life package. Frank reluctantly agrees with April's plan, but they soon discover that the perception of their new situation will be a greater obstacle than they thought. They tell their neighbours of their plans, and the husband glares at them and says accusingly, "SHE'LL be supporting YOU?"

On a technical level, Revolutionary Road is terrific. The detail that Mendes and his production designer Kristi Zea employ in this recreation of life in the 1950s is astounding and almost ludicrously meticulous. Same goes for the costume design by Albert Wolsky. Stylistically the film is immediately identifiable as a Sam Mendes film. Mendes' background is primarily in theatre, and at times Revolutionary Road does feel like a filmed play in the way that the actors have been directed. Both leads are strong, particularly Winslet. She was nominated for Best Actress this year, but not for this film. I have yet to see her in The Reader, in the role that she was nominated for, but it would have to be something remarkable if she got the nod for that role over this one.

Thomas Newman scores the music for Revolutionary Road, as he has done for all of Sam Mendes' movies. His score is haunting, but doesn't call attention to itself. I've always thought Newman is among the greatest musical composers working in the movies today. This year, he has been Oscar-nominated for his work on Wall*E, but he could just as easily have been nominated for his work here. Likewise, the god-like cinematographer Roger Deakins evokes the period and the tension between April and Frank perfectly. Revolutionary Road's credits play like a 'greatest hits' of behind-the-scenes workers in movies today.

Revolutionary Road was hotly anticipated partly because it marked the reunion of Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio -- this is their first film together since Titanic way back in 1997. In that film their relationship ran primarily on doe-eyed lust and idealised romance. Revolutionary Road shows their relationship well after the honeymoon period is over. I'm sure many couples reach a point like this in real life, although perhaps without as much of the societal pressure that the Wheelers find themselves under. The final scenes of Revolutionary Road serve as a warning, I feel. To understand a relationship between yourself and another person, it is vital to first understand your own hopes and dreams, the things about life you can change, those you cannot, and to have the wisdom to tell the difference.