Before Soderbergh hit the big time with the ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ franchise or his ‘Contagion’ became the most watched film in the year of confinement, Steven Soderbergh premiered ‘Sex, lies and videotape’, his dazzling debut in the seventh art and also his most intimate story to date. You can see it on Filmin.
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undressing the soul
John and Ann are the typical married couple that, despite having a comfortable life, it cannot be said that they are happy together: he has one affair after another (the last one with Cynthia, Ann’s sister) and she is a housewife used to keeping her thoughts to herself. Things will change with the arrival of Graham, John’s enigmatic friend who also has a few secrets to hide.
Despite the fact that sex is very present in ‘Sex, Lies and Videotapes’, Steven Soderbergh’s debut feature gives greater weight to the emotional nudity of its characters. In fact, there are few (and very little explicit) sex scenes, working as a catalyst for the characters’ obsessions and symbolically presenting the characteristics of each one.
The argument gives us Two sides of the same coin: free and unbridled sexuality versus repressed and almost non-existent sexuality. The first situation characterizes John and Cynthia, two characters who live life according to their own rules, although in the end they only think about their own enjoyment and do not stop to think about whether they can hurt others.
While Ann and Graham are in the second, representing that “living death” that their existence has become, due to past experiences or not being able to say what they really think.
The light at the end of the tunnel
The film defines its four protagonists very well and immerses us in an emotional journey of self-discoveryin which each one will realize their shortcomings and whether or not they want to do something about it.
Soderbergh displays a great subtlety not only from the script (bearing his signature) but also from the staging. Through the camera movements, the frames or the costumes, he gives brushstrokes of the state of mind of each one and of the small changes that they experience in their way of being.
Part of the merit of this great characterization comes from its cast of actors: with a very young james spader (before bringing out his darker side in ‘Crash’), Andie McDowell (marking the beginning of a prolific decade in his career, with hits like ‘Trapped in Time’ or ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’), Peter Gallagher (‘American Beauty’) and Laura San Giacomo (‘Pretty Woman’).
Although the beginning may give the impression that we are facing a cynical and somewhat morbid story, there is also room for optimism. The film tells us about the weight of loneliness that we impose on ourselves and how, in the same way, there is the possibility of choosing to get out of it by opening ourselves to others.
‘Sex, lies and videotape’ is the fantastic debut feature with which Steven Soderbergh entered through the big door in the cinema. A work subtle and deeply intimate that uses sex as an excuse to talk to us about loneliness and present us with the inner journey of its protagonists.