Manic - 2002 Dir Jordan Melamed
A Review by Ollie
Lyle Jensen, played with astonishing accuracy by Joseph Gordon-Levitt is subject to sudden and violent outbursts, and he is committed to the juvenile wing of the Northwood Mental Institution, where a dramatic and very powerful insight into juvenile mental illness is played out by an equally adept cast. To single Joseph out would be unfair, as the entire cast turns in a remarkable performance. Cody Lightning's quiet, gentle and deeply affecting performance of an abused child is disconcerting; actor's aren't supposed to be this realistic are they?
Trying to help these desperate young people is Dr Monroe, portrayed by Don Cheadle, who clearly has problems of his own. The scenes of group therapy are powerful and emotionally draining, most notably when Monroe 'loses it' with Lyle.
I am not going to even attempt to review the film with too much depth. This is one where only the individual reviewer can do that. There are plenty of reviews on the IMDB, 99% of which all seem to voice more or less the same opinion, which I share, that this is a compelling, and frighteningly realistic portrayal of the depths of human instinct and mental torture.
The final scene is beautiful and you are left wondering whether Lyle is walking away, or walking back - more than that I will not say.
I have worked with people who have had various mental disorders, and the portrayal of each individual character is startlingly accurate, and almost poetic. Levitt portrays more with his eyes than most actors manage to convey through an entire film. From sadness, desperation and an emptiness that no fully sane person could hope to comprehend, to intense anger and rage, it's all there, deep in those eyes. Words become an added luxury to his conveyance of such a deeply disturbed young man.
Weakest link? I don't know - the colour of the walls? Put simply, there are no weak links. The direction is intense, the camerawork belies that of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, the score is subtle and effective, the casting could not have been better.
This isn't going to be to everyone's taste - it is deeply, deeply affecting, and succeeded in reducing me to tears at more than one point. The shaky, camcorder style direction is bound to put some off, but this isn't a big bucks, Hollywood blockbuster - this is a film for people who love and appreciate true film, and moreover, true life. This is as real as it gets, and is well worth seeing.
It gets a full 10/10 from me, for many reasons, not least that I have seen first hand the ravaging affect mental instability can have a person, and I have yet to see a more accurate portrayal. Simply astonishing.
Reviewed by Ollie Jan 2004.
A Review by Ollie
Lyle Jensen, played with astonishing accuracy by Joseph Gordon-Levitt is subject to sudden and violent outbursts, and he is committed to the juvenile wing of the Northwood Mental Institution, where a dramatic and very powerful insight into juvenile mental illness is played out by an equally adept cast. To single Joseph out would be unfair, as the entire cast turns in a remarkable performance. Cody Lightning's quiet, gentle and deeply affecting performance of an abused child is disconcerting; actor's aren't supposed to be this realistic are they?
Trying to help these desperate young people is Dr Monroe, portrayed by Don Cheadle, who clearly has problems of his own. The scenes of group therapy are powerful and emotionally draining, most notably when Monroe 'loses it' with Lyle.
I am not going to even attempt to review the film with too much depth. This is one where only the individual reviewer can do that. There are plenty of reviews on the IMDB, 99% of which all seem to voice more or less the same opinion, which I share, that this is a compelling, and frighteningly realistic portrayal of the depths of human instinct and mental torture.
The final scene is beautiful and you are left wondering whether Lyle is walking away, or walking back - more than that I will not say.
I have worked with people who have had various mental disorders, and the portrayal of each individual character is startlingly accurate, and almost poetic. Levitt portrays more with his eyes than most actors manage to convey through an entire film. From sadness, desperation and an emptiness that no fully sane person could hope to comprehend, to intense anger and rage, it's all there, deep in those eyes. Words become an added luxury to his conveyance of such a deeply disturbed young man.
Weakest link? I don't know - the colour of the walls? Put simply, there are no weak links. The direction is intense, the camerawork belies that of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, the score is subtle and effective, the casting could not have been better.
This isn't going to be to everyone's taste - it is deeply, deeply affecting, and succeeded in reducing me to tears at more than one point. The shaky, camcorder style direction is bound to put some off, but this isn't a big bucks, Hollywood blockbuster - this is a film for people who love and appreciate true film, and moreover, true life. This is as real as it gets, and is well worth seeing.
It gets a full 10/10 from me, for many reasons, not least that I have seen first hand the ravaging affect mental instability can have a person, and I have yet to see a more accurate portrayal. Simply astonishing.
Reviewed by Ollie Jan 2004.