Married Life

At various times throughout this very fine film, one character says to another something to the effect that "one can not build happiness on the unhappiness of someone else. Some can, but not someone with your burden of conscience." Each time this line is said the situation is slightly different, and is indicative of how clever and engaging this story is. This is my favorite release of 2008 so far (not that I've seen very many). I wasn't quite sure where the plot was going next, and I enjoyed the ride.

The film was directed by Ira Sachs, with a script by Sachs and Owen Moverman, based on an old pulp novel from the 1950's. It is set in middle-class America in 1949, and almost everything about it, from the costumes, sets, music, and cast rings true. So often I see period films where the actors look like they are playing dress-up, but the quartet of performers in Married Life are all effective playing people of my grandparent's generation. And unlike other films that use this setting to make a political statement, such as Far From Heaven, Married Life does not. It doesn't judge its characters, merely observes, and finds humanity in all of them.

The story concerns Harry Allen, a successful businessman, and his wife, Pat. Harry is a somewhat mild-mannered fellow who hides behind owlish glasses and the somewhat sentimental longing to be truly loved. His wife has a far less romantic view of life. So Harry has found a younger woman, Kay, who loves him the way he craves. He has decided to leave Pat, and as the film begins Harry tells his plans to his good friend Rich, who is something of a rake who has avoided marriage (he sees it as an illness like chicken pox to which he has immunity).

Rich narrates the story, so we know immediately that upon meeting Kay he wants her to himself. He finds himself in the middle of Harry's mess, even more so when he finds out a secret about Pat. In a Machiavellian mode, he withholds information to enable him to win Kay, but unknown to him at the time is that Harry has decided that he doesn't want to hurt Pat, so instead he will kill her.

Despite this sinister turn of the plot, none of the characters are unsympathetic, even though Harry is a philanderer and plotting murder, and Rich is manipulating others through dishonest methods. I found the characters complex and interesting, and with vulnerabilities that were intriguing. It probably helps that it's a great group of actors. Chris Cooper is Harry, and he's one of the more reliable actors in film today. Patricia Clarkson, an indie veteran, is Pat, and Rachel McAdams, looking as luminescent as a movie star, is Kay. Pierce Brosnan is Rich, and in some ways I was most impressed with his performance, because we know very little about him, but he carries the film in a lot of ways and there is a stretch where he leaves the screen and is sorely missed.

The only film I've seen from Sachs before is 40 Shades of Blue, which I found to be a yawn, but Married Life is consistently interesting. The photography, by Peter Deming, is in those muted pastels associated with color films of the era, and I want to mention the costume designer and art director by name: they are Michael Dennison and Gwendolyn Margetson, respectively. Everyone is associated with this film is to be commended.