Distancecatcher

Rating: Null/10 (6 January 2015)

Can a film be made with all the available technical prowess yet still fail in its ability to relate what it wants to the audience? It has happened before, though usually in science fiction or action- laced stories where special effects and mechanical devices override any characterization or human interest. Yet, in the case of Bennett Miller's Foxcatcher, the result is too much stylistic layout for the sake of not enough dramatic juice to let the story flow smoothly. Watching this film is like witnessing a car engine break down due to losing oil, transmission and coolant simultaneously; this movie needs its essential fluids replenished.
So much has been said already about Steve Carell's performance, but is it anything more than a well-known comic actor under a lot of makeup and prosthetics attempting to disguise himself as a 'serious' actor? Of course, other actors have followed similar paths like this before, but Carell's acting seems too subdued to allow us to be interested in what he is doing. Bennett Miller has always been a director who likes to keep the audience at arm's, or even a parking lot's, distance, so it is hardly surprising that Carell is directed to perform so. Indeed, John du Pont is the most potentially interesting character because he is a seemingly walking paradox. He possesses a doctorate in ornithology, is the heir to the fabulously wealthy and prestigious du Pont chemical corporation. Yet, he is presented, with whatever historical accuracy that can be managed, as a quietly malevolent control freak with serious mommy issues and some ambiguous form of mental illness. All this is deduction, of course. The film has no interest in exploring who du Pont truly was or what motivates him to act as he does. Here, he is merely the lone villain, the obvious bad guy we are supposed to both fear and be fascinated with. In this regard, Carell is creepily effective, but it bodes no goodwill upon the film or our rooting interest in him. He cannot, or will not, be penetrated by the audience.
Opposing this, Channing Tatum may end up being the most revelatory element about the film. Known previously as a handsome but absent- minded meat-head-type actor receiving roles based upon his looks rather than acting ability, Tatum here finds the perfect role for himself, utilizing the typifications of his career in order to portray wrestler Mark Schultz as just what he has been stereotyped as: a mindless, muscular athlete with little to no ability to separate himself from either his brother or the past they share. He wants to individualize and prove himself to be more than a mere fighter of men for sport, but he simultaneously desires leadership and direction within the context of a team and common goal to be attained. This he had with his brother, Dave, and he soon finds it to a weird degree with John du Pont.
While the movie covers this unusual but symbiotic relationship, interest is maintained and Tatum proves himself to be a reliable and intense actor, walking in a slouch and keeping his lower jaw agape like a heavy-breathing animal. Then, the plot begins to gear forward, albeit with somewhat large jumps in plausibility or logic. Firstly, Dave comes to run du Pont's wrestling team with no explanation despite having rejected the same offer earlier. This is never cleared up. Then, the shift focuses from emasculated Mark to the unsettling strangeness of John du Pont as Carell continues to walk around, sometimes with a gun, but always lurking and watching hie beloved team of men and patriots training for American greatness in the upcoming Seoul Olympics. Finally, the inevitable element of this true story establishes its presence, forcing us to watch something that could have easily been left out in order to focus on the characters. Instead, it is presented as the denouement of a true crime TV special, shot abruptly and shockingly, but to no effect upon our sympathies or understanding.
In his review, David Edelstein referred to Foxcatcher as "a true crime story bloated into looking significant." He mentions Miller's most lauded film, Capote, as having a similar detached quality, although that film seems to understand better its obsession. It may also help that Capote is a far more interesting character than du Pont, as well as the fact that Phillip Seymour Hoffman is better- suited for these kinds of roles than Steve Carell. Nevertheless, the bottom line is that Miller has shown himself capable of visually expanding somewhat thin stories into depressing, but admirable dramas where the look of things trumps nearly anything happening within the frame. Perhaps the one conclusion to be taken from this is that you can get away with this type of storytelling provided you have a fascinating character portrayed by a competent actor. In this case, Carell's brave performance is only that; a gimmicky attempt to distance himself from comedy while simultaneously distancing himself from the audience of Foxcatcher.