Product: Fur - An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus (2006)
Rating: 4.0
Fascinating and erotic
I didn't realize, when I went to see this film, that the directorwas also responsible for "Secretary", but in retrospect this makesperfect sense. Both films concern themselves with the twisted sideof humanity, or perhaps, the humanity of kink. "Fur" chronicles theimaginary but convincing awakening of Diane Arbus to her truefascination with the grotesque. Frustrated and oppressed by herlife as a vanilla 1950's housewife, Diane yearns for something more.She sees the bizarre and disturbing details in her surroundings thatothers miss, but thus far has not had the courage to record herobservations.When she catches a glimpse of Lionel (Robert Downney Jr.), completelymasked, she somehow recognizes him as the key to escaping hersuffocating life. He sends her the key to his apartment, throughthe sewer pipes, an apt metaphor. Hesitant at first, then exuberant,she surrenders to her true self, the beautiful, poised womansurrounded by dwarves and siamese twins who is nevertheless, inLionel's words, a "real freak". For Diane, this is badge ofhonor.Diane's fascination with the bizarre, and with Lionel, is intenselysexual. The tension between the two protagonists is maintainedthrough the film, gradually turning to desperate longing.Yet they hardly touch. Their inevitable coupling near theend of the film seems anti-climatic. The real climax is theterribly intimate and prolonged scene in which Diane shavesLionel's entire body.I'll agree with other reviewers that the ending of the filmfalters. Nevertheless, this movie touched me deeply, and Irecommend it highly.