Foxcatcher

Before watching and writing about Foxcatcher I did a bit of research about John DuPont and it confirmed what I saw in this film. Before any of the action of this film takes place, DuPont already had been accused of making improper advances by one man. He was also ever so briefly married, just like Rock Hudson.

Steve Carrell plays the uptight and repressed gay man John DuPont with a minimum of dialog and emotion, but with facial and body language that tell more than 20 pages of script could. He well deserved to be nominated for Best Actor.

John DuPont is from one of America's richest families and he's a man with a lot of money and a lot of time on his hands. He's developed an interest in wrestling and not the kind that Vince McMahon gives us three night a week. He decides to develop and finance a team of wrestlers that will win all championships including Olympic gold. Carrell is like George Steinbrenner with an open checkbook in the free agency market.

Two of his wants are the brothers Schultz. Mark is played by Channing Tatum and he is dazzled by the world that Carrell wants to invite him into. Carrell is crushing out on Channing Tatum big time which is understandable. David the older and more successful brother is played by Mark Ruffalo who got a Best Supporting Actor nomination is harder to get, but he does succumb. It leads to one unspeakable tragedy.

Foxcatcher also got nominations for Best Director, Best Makeup, and Best Original Screenplay. It didn't come away with any statues though.

I should also mention Vanessa Redgrave as Carrell's grand dame of society mother who is as uptight as her son. She too with minimal dialog conveys this branch of the large DuPont family is one uptight limb of the family tree.

Foxcatcher is a deeply disturbing, but very good film to see.