Director: Atom Egoyan
Starring: David Hemblen, Aidan Tierney, Gabrielle Rose, Arsinee Khanjian, Selma Keklikian, Jeanne Sabourin, Rose Sarkisyan,
Running Time: 82 Minutes
Certificate: 15
In his follow-up to 1984’s NEXT OF KIN, Atom Egoyan once again analysed the roles of family in modern society. Unlike its predecessor though, FAMILY VIEWING takes a much more complicated plot along with presenting the film in experimental ways. It’s certainly the work of a director still finding his voice as Egoyan tries out some new techniques, as well as elaborating themes with which he is confident.
Aidan Tierney plays Van, a young man whose family has been disjointed ever since his mother left. Van’s father Stan (Hemblen), lives with his new lover Sandra (Rose). While visiting his grandmother/Stan’s mother-in-law (Keklikian), Van meets Aline (Khanjian) a sex phone operator whose mother shares the same room at the nursing home. As their lives cross, we experience the life of Van’s family through traditional narrative techniques, as well as hallucinogenic feeling home videos, CCTV footage, and some exaggerated plays on sitcoms. This is the avant garde side of Egoyan rearing its head, and for the most part it is handled with enough forethought to slide well into the film. At other times it can be more of a distraction, especially as the film takes a little while to get going.
Egoyan’s views on family are once again bleak on the outside, but suggest that, like NEXT OF KIN, love needs to be earned. As Stan, Hemblen portrays a man that can easily be seen as cruel and narcissistic, but he also gets across the underlying emotions of hatered he feels towards his mother-in-law, as a reminder of the wife that left him. Stan’s frustration is further characterised by his decision to record over family memories with filmed sex sessions of him and his current lover. Again, it’s an act that seems contemptible, but anyone can understand his thought process due to the fascinating subtext.
FAMILY VIEWING is Egoyan pushing the boundaries of cinema and how it is digested. In many ways it seems as though he is trying to see how far he can go before making his film inaccessible to the audience. It’s a brave manoeuvre, and one that adds a clear sense of intent. Unfortunately, the stylistic choices do overshadow what is another moving character study. The actors do manage to get to the core of their individual roles, and expertly change their acting style as the film changes its form. Anyone looking into the work of Egoyan has to check this film out, as it reveals a talented film maker testing the limits of their creative skills.
FAMILY VIEWING is released on DVD and Blu-ray on 24th June via Artificial Eye.
