INTIMACY —** — Mark Rylance, Kerry Fox, Timothy Spall, Alastair Galbraith, Phillippe Calvario, Marianne Faithfull, Susannah Harker, Fraser Ayres; not rated, probable NC-17 (sex, nudity, profanity, vulgarity, drug use, brief violence); exclusively at the Tower Theatre.Like one of its two major characters, the drama "Intimacy" would like to start up a rather involved discussion, but unfortunately, the sex keeps getting in the way.
And let's set something straight in a hurry — the sex scenes in this downbeat character piece are as graphic as any that have ever been seen in "legitimate" cinema. (In fact, it's debatable whether all of the sexual contact between characters in this film can be called "simulated," which explains why it was banned in at least one European country.)
Consequently, the film has been released by its distributor without an MPAA rating, which means that nothing has been left out for its current U.S. theatrical run.
To be fair to the film, it should be noted that there seems to be a point to the explicit content — it's evidently intended to show a more "realistic," less glamorous version of an adulterous relationship. However, as valid that point might be, there's no reason for filmmaker Patrice Chereau to go quite so far. And, unfortunately, the sexual content diverts attention away from what is some very powerful acting by the film's talented cast.
"Intimacy" is a somewhat ironic title. Though divorced bartender Jay (Mark Rylance) is having an affair with married Claire (Kerry Fox), it's under what is possibly the least intimate of circumstances.
The two of them begin meeting weekly in his fairly grungy apartment, but have little interaction with each other . . . aside from sex. That's fine with Claire, who's not looking for anything more than a purely physical relationship, but it's a bit disturbing to Jay. So he begins following her around town in an attempt to get to "know" her better — despite the fact that such a move could anger Claire and cause her to discontinue their affair.
In the film's second half, Chereau and co-screenwriter Anne-Louise Trividic attempt to flesh out (so to speak) the story with subplots about one of Jay's friends and one of his co-workers, as well as Claire's husband (British character-actor Timothy Spall). But all it does is show how much better the film might have been if it hadn't focused so much on the tawdry sexual relationship.
Still, there's no denying how strong the performances are by Fox — and especially Rylance, who deserves credit for taking on such a bold role.
"Intimacy" is not rated but would certainly receive an NC-17 for its graphic depiction of sex (which, again, may not be accurately termed "simulated"), full male and female nudity, frequent use of strong sexually related profanity, crude sexual slang terms and references, simulated drug use (cocaine), and brief violence (a party tussle). Running time: 119 minutes.
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