HYSTERIA

HYSTERIA
Written by Stepher Dyer, Jonah Lisa Dyer
Directed by Tanya Wexler
Starring Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Rupert Everett

In Victorian London, the word, “hysteria”, was a medical term used to define the general restlessness and anxiety of the city’s housewives and the occasional tirade that stemmed from said affliction. Of course, we now know this as mere boredom but at the time, the menfolk didn’t know what to do with all these hysterical women. The deeper implications of how the word fully strips women of any power or stature they might have are merely touched on in Tanya Wexler’s HYSTERIA. Instead, the focus lies more with what was invented to deal with the issue, the vibrator. But while you might expect this topic would set the film abuzz with excitement, it doesn’t. Instead, the batteries die out before you get to the good part.

083. Robbie Williams: Live at the Albert

053. (09 Mar) Robbie Williams: Live at the Albert (2001, Hamish Hamilton) 65



There are few people I'd rather see in concert ahead of Robbie Williams. This delightful promotional gig for "Swing While You're Winning" showcases his talents as an entertainer. Clear standouts are his melodramatic rendition of "I Will Talk and Hollywood Will Listen" and his tearful "My Way." But there's not a clunker here aside from some gags involving Rupert Everett. It's also a tad peculiar that despite their being present, neither Everett nor Nicole Kidman duet with him. Instead we get Jon Lovitz and Jane Horrocks, who are lame substitutes.

045. The Next Best Thing

045. (05 Feb) The Next Best Thing (2000, John Schlesinger) 35



So this is what would've happened if Will & Grace had been piloted with Madonna and Rupert Everett and they had a kid in the first episode. Considering its reputation, The Next Best Thing isn't that bad. It's just a wacky sitcom paced and written rather hideously. There's no consistency in tone whatsoever. For stretches it's a weird comedy and then a sappy, sentimental romance before turning inappropriately dramatic.

Rupert Everett is rather charming while Benjamin Bratt is wannabe dashing. Madonna repeatedly steals the show with a performance always attempting to be sincere and rarely succeeding.

In the last act, she blindsides Everett by essentially kidnapping their six-year-old son. It's a moment that's truly jarring, messing up the film's entire dynamic by making her unfathomably unsympathetic. It also turns out she's been lying about paternity for years, offering up a scene that's straight out of a soap opera. The melodrama in the last thirty minutes is surprisingly well-acted and totally engaging despite some very bad writing.

Had the finale taken a lighter approach, this would've surely been a cult classic. Instead, it's just a weird, deeply depressing misfire.

045. The Next Best Thing

045. (05 Feb) The Next Best Thing (2000, John Schlesinger) 35



So this is what would've happened if Will & Grace had been piloted with Madonna and Rupert Everett and they had a kid in the first episode. Considering its reputation, The Next Best Thing isn't that bad. It's just a wacky sitcom paced and written rather hideously. There's no consistency in tone whatsoever. For stretches it's a weird comedy and then a sappy, sentimental romance before turning inappropriately dramatic.

Rupert Everett is rather charming while Benjamin Bratt is wannabe dashing. Madonna repeatedly steals the show with a performance always attempting to be sincere and rarely succeeding.

In the last act, she blindsides Everett by essentially kidnapping their six-year-old son. It's a moment that's truly jarring, messing up the film's entire dynamic by making her unfathomably unsympathetic. It also turns out she's been lying about paternity for years, offering up a scene that's straight out of a soap opera. The melodrama in the last thirty minutes is surprisingly well-acted and totally engaging despite some very bad writing.

Had the finale taken a lighter approach, this would've surely been a cult classic. Instead, it's just a weird, deeply depressing misfire.