Director: Sean Mathias
Starring: Clive Owen, Lothaire Bluteau, Ian McKellen, Mick Jagger, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Brian Webber, Jude Law, Gresby Nash, Suzanne Bertish, David Meyer
Bent Trailer
A suave, debonair playboy, Max (played by Clive Owen), is living the decadent and promiscuous Berlin nightclub life. Though he is dedicated to his lover Rudy (played by Brian Webber), who performs in the cabaret, he can't resist the attractive German soldier that catches his eye during a raucous night at Greta's club. Like everyone else at the club that night, they are oblivious to the reign of terror that is about to drive them underground. It is the infamous Night of the Long Knives and Max's one-night-stand, an associate of the homosexual Nazi Commander Ernst Rohm, doesn't live to see the morning. Although Max and Rudy escape, the Gestapo follows. Like the erstwhile androgynous Greta (played by Mick Jagger), who burns all her dresses and begins a new life as "George," Berlin is changing. Years before the true commencement of the Holocaust, Hitler has reenacted the little-used German law Paragraph 175 (see also Paragraph 175), making homosexuality illegal. This political step, coupled with the murderous actions of Hitler's secret police, sends a clear message to the homosexual community of Berlin: deny your sexuality or flee. In a desperate fight for survival, Max contacts his Uncle Freddie (played by Sir Ian McKellen) to make a deal that will get himself and Rudy safely across the border to Amsterdam. But before they can escape, they are rounded up like stray dogs and shuffled aboard a train headed for Dachau. In the indignity of a filthy crowded train car, a fellow prisoner, Horst (played by Lothaire Bluteau), teaches Max how to cope with the new order. To make it off the train, he must harden his heart. He must do what the Gestapo tells him including aiding in the brutal torture and murder of his lover anything to stay alive. In the harsh conditions of the work yard at Dachau, Horst teaches Max another life-saving lesson not about the survival of the body but the survival of the heart. Though the two men cannot touch, they find a way to make love. Despite the agony, despite the scrutiny, Max learns through his powerful bond with Horst that survival, like intimacy, has less to do with the flesh than with personal truth and fundamental human dignity.
This film adaptation of Martin Sherman's play is only partially successful. The greatest problem is that it seems too theatrical; the stylized sets, the small number of people in the concentration camp scenes, the visual monotony of watching two prisoners constantly move rocks back and forth, the clipped exchange of repetitious dialogue, and the overwrought ending all contribute to making the film seem stagy and artificial. The scenes don't seem to flow together organically; instead, the film seems like a series of discreet set pieces. Also, some individual scenes are less compelling than they could have been; for example, a crucial scene in which Max "earns" his yellow star is filmed in a manner that minimizes its dramatic value. Granted, this particular example could be due to either a lapse in filmmaking or a conscious decision to not exploit the scene's highly disturbing content. Indeed, the film's subject matter is so emotionally charged that some of the scenes are affecting even if they do seem overly theatrical. The fine performances help a great deal; Clive Owen does a convincing job of portraying Max's transformation from a selfish hedonist to a man willing to reclaim his dignity while Luther Bluteau is quite effective at conveying Horst's underlying feelings of anger, pride, and fear. Their performances are particularly important in the film's showcase scene; as Max and Horst talk themselves into mutual satisfaction without any physical contact, they demonstrate the indomitability of the human spirit and the ability of people to express their sexuality, love, and defiance of oppression under even the most adverse conditions. Sure, this is a self-consciously crowd-pleasing scene that's intended to drive home an obvious point, but it's still quite moving. Too bad there aren't more equally compelling scenes in the movie. - Review by Todd Kristel
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