Kidman Inspired In Offbeat ' Fur ', *SPOILERS* Options

[friendlyfox]

The time is closer for UK and Australia to see this film finally. What a shame it is realeased in this dribs and drabs way so we could not talk about it on the internet in any meangingful way. To me the momentum from fans across the world being able to talk about it at the same time would have helped the film too. My thoughts

*SPOILERS*

Kidman inspired in offbeat 'Fur'
Friday, February 02, 2007
By John Serba
The Grand Rapids Press
As the title implies, "Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus" is a fictional extrapolation of the famed American photographer's artistic muse.

As a title card and a disclaimer in the credits spoonfeed us, none of the film's events is true. Arbus did not fall in love with a man covered head-to-toe in thick hair, thus prompting her separation from her husband, and inspiring her striking portraits of people on society's fringe.

Somewhat disappointingly, the events in the film exist within the realm of possibility, so this "imaginary" non-biopic never ventures into the fantastic.


Perhaps this is the reason why Arbus, played by Nicole Kidman in one of her handful of offbeat roles, remains a relatively complex and sympathetic character. Despite Robert Downey Jr.'s resembling a truncated Chewbacca minus the grumphs and growls, the humanity at the film's heart isn't completely overshadowed by its dabbling with strangeness.

Similar characters

"Fur" is directed by Steven Shainberg, who helmed "Secretary," in which Maggie Gyllenhaal plays a woman -- again, sympathetic -- indulging in her secret desires for bedroom sadomasochism.

So it makes sense that "Fur" subtly depicts Arbus as having a fetish for the hirsute, on top of being a closeted exhibitionist and voyeur. One could argue that photographers often have voyeuristic tendencies, so maybe that trait has a toe in reality.

It's 1958. Arbus leads a conventional, buttoned-up lifestyle as the daughter of high-society Manhattanites, a mother of two daughters and the wife of successful fashion photographer Allan (Ty Burrell). During a fur-coat showcase arranged by her parents, she's asked what exactly she does, and while explaining her unchallenging duties as Allan's assistant, she breaks into tears. She walks to the balcony and opens her dress for the man in the flat across the street.

Outside interest

Enter Lionel. He's a masked man who moves into the apartment upstairs. Diane asks to take his portrait; first, she enters his apartment, filled with animals and freak-show paraphernalia, and then his headspace, which accepts and nurtures the dark corridors of her psyche.

She looks upon Lionel's hairy visage not with fear or condescension, but admiration -- he has no choice but to expose his oddity to the world, and therefore, he's free.

Not surprisingly, Lionel is a wigmaker. Perhaps he harvests himself; we'd rather not know, I think. His friends, presumably his former co-workers, include little people, giants, conjoined twins and a woman with no arms. Diane feels happier among these "freaks," a drastic contrast to the upper-crust Scotch-sippers she secretly loathes.

And so the film follows a fairly conventional path through Arbus' discontent. Smartly, though, the screenplay (by Erin Cressida Wilson, referencing Patricia Bosworth's biography of Arbus) never draws bold lines between Arbus and Allan. He slowly realizes he doesn't truly know his wife, and, in a quietly comic turn, he grows a beard, hoping to accommodate her.

Allan is a conventional man. Lionel is not. Yet, thanks to Kidman's inspired performance, we understand why Diane could love them both, and why she makes certain decisions. This is why "Fur" is a success as an off-kilter character study, even if it's not as inventive as it could be.

This post has been edited by friendlyfox: Feb 3 2007, 10:34 AM

[missu2fan]

thanks foxy for the review. i guess i'll have to wait for the dvd.
loops

[katekidman]

ohhhh i cant wait till its out! gosh it feels like forever..

thanks for the review Foxy! xx

[friendlyfox]

Someone is still following 'Fur" hooray

It is such a gap since we got some member input into it.

Are we all waiting for the DVD? I suspect I may have to due to the limited release means it will only show in the major cities and maybe only 1 cinema in each!.

Fur was said to be released around February 7 or 10 here in Australia but I have seen nothing on it and now some Australian sources have it back in the "sometime in 2007" basket.

*fingers crossed*

[Samantha Stevens]

Thanks for the review.
Strange as it may seem, it appears that Fur had a normal release, just after Rome Film Festival, only in Italy!
ciao

[Grace Margaret M...]

thnx for that nice review. i am so glad i could see fur at the oslo film festival. it is really strange with the release dates for that movie, it seems to be quite unorganized...

[jujuelen]

Great review, thanks !!!

[SparklingAda]

yeyyyyyy! I can't wait for this to come out in the UK!