Product: To Die For (1995)
Rating: 5.0
Narcissism Meets Blind Ambition...
Lately I have been revisiting old favorite films, perhaps to see if they are as good as I recall. And this one,To Die For, with Nicole Kidman as Suzanne Stone, the self-obsessed ambitious TV personality - actually, a "weather person" for a cable station - whose blind drive leads her down a very dark path, is every bit as good as I remember.Based on the novel by Joyce Maynard - who, incidentally, plays the lawyer in the film - we learn of a beautiful young woman's quest for a life in front of the television camera; despite her limitations, she imagines herself as the next Barbara Walters.When she marries a young Italian-American musician, (played by Matt Dillon), whose parents own a restaurant, and who sets aside his dreams to become someone she envisions as an appropriate husband - an insurance salesman - he hopes there will be trade-offs for him. He constantly brings up his desire for a family. But his wife only cares about her own career, her little dog, and the condo they own.When Suzanne embarks on a "project" with teenagers at the local school - New Hope, New Hampshire - she believes that the documentary will propel her into big-time journalism. The teenagers, however, with their serious limitations, soon are manipulated into the midst of a nefarious plot. And nothing will ever be the same again.The teen boys - played by Joaquin Phoenix and Casey Affleck - are convincingly cast as the mentally and emotionally challenged pawns.Gus Van Sant directs, with his usual brilliance; the film was just as haunting this time around and well worth a visit (or revisit).By Laurel-Rain Snow