Downloading Nancy

Something dark looms over this movie: Nancy's plan. For a long time, we don't know what it is, but it can't be good. Nancy (Maria Bello) is a pain junkie, the self-destructive kind: no pain, no gain. Maria Bello, she's good. This is her movie. The way she carries herself, the way she walks and the way she talks all radiate defeat. Maria Bello has a nice, articulate voice. But when Nancy speaks in that same voice, it doesn't matter what she says. The way she says it says it all. Nancy rarely smiles, and it's a pretty desperate smile, mostly reserved for her luckless therapist. Against hope, I found myself hoping for better days, but they never break. Nancy takes off to Baltimore. "Who has friends in Baltimore?", her helpless husband finds himself wondering. He's right. Nobody does. Nancy doesn't. She doesn't have friends. Not in Baltimore, not anywhere. She's not the type. - The script jumps back and forth in time, to unsettling effect. If you liked "Chasing Sleep" or "Breaking the Waves", this might be for you, but I'm not sure it's for anyone. There's not a ray of light in it, but I guess that's what life is like for the likes of Nancy.

The title DownloadingNancy does nothing for this film, I wish the writer could have come up with something more polished because the title doesn't do the film any justice. That is literally the only thing wrong with this disturbing but excellent film.

Maria Bello is on top of her game as Nancy, a woman who is tormented by life, a woman who has given up hope of ever finding happiness, Bello has never been better than she is here, it's such a shame that this film went unnoticed because I'm sure she would've been a frontrunner for all of the big awards. She totally embodies this character, in saying that, Maria Bello is a tremendously watchable actress and no matter what kind of role she's in she always shines.

This film has a fascinating subject matter, the thought of someone being so unhappy in life that they would go to the extreme of paying someone to torture and kill them is truly sad. This film is loosely based in fact so it's not Luke we can just say " it's only a movie", also this is not just a one off thing, another film tackles the same subject, Grimm Love, starring Keri Russell also has the same story line, that movie is much more horrific and graphic but it deals with the same issue of people being unhappy in life.

This movie isn't something to cheer you up, it's most certainly not going to do that, but if you like movies that will divide a room and start a conversation then this is one for you.

I wish this movie had found a bigger audience because it's so deserving of a wide audience, I really hope Maria Bello gets more roles like this in the future. She's just excellent.

Crimelibrary has an account of a suburban Baltimore, MD woman whose story is markedly similar to this film in the broad facts.

However, the movie departs from that story when exploring the protagonist's psychology - Maria Bello plays a very different character from that of Sharon Lopatka. The film tries to link contradicting pathologies which weren't present in the real story, and which would be fine if there was a point - there doesn't seem to be. Unlike Michael Haneke's, "La Pianiste," there seems to be a poor grasp or care about the underlying chaos of this character beyond the dramatic possibilities. Maria Bello's performance is admirable but the narrative fails to draw significant meaning from the substance of her struggle.

While there is an attempt to create a dark, grim sheen to the film, the casting of two very pretty Hollywood stars (Bello and Patric) was an epic blunder. It adds an unwelcome 'allure' to a tale which should remain, frankly, indigestible. Marketable, sexy actors transform this fascinating story into something weirdly, sadly exploitative. Jason Patric is such a poor choice - it couldn't be any more distracting if it were Brad Pitt! (It might have felt more grounded with actors like James Gandolfini and Kathy Bates... ).

Rufus Sewell is captivating here and brings a needed realism in his portrayal of the bewildered husband.

obviously has some talent attached, Maria Bello is always great. but this is just a dreary wast of time, portraying every character as someone to be loathed and exploited so someone could make a movie out of an 'interesting' story. well, i hope they got it out of their systems. unfortunately for the audience, there is no insight, no sensitivity, no context, and really no humanity. which would all be fine, except it has no humor, no horror, no context, and nothing constructive to say about the story it's trying to tell. bad things happen, you sit and watch it, you don't care, so what? 99% of the time, the words 'based on a true story' constitute an unintentional warning to the audience. it means the director and screenwriter are lazy and fascinated by some events they heard about somewhere, so they just throw them up on the screen and expect the 'true' nature of the story to make the audience feel something without the filmmakers having to do any of the work. i hope they had a great time making this movie. it stinks on ice.

The masochist housewife Nancy (Maria Bello) is a physically and psychologically destroyed woman. She had been so violently abused by her uncle since she was seven years old that she can not have babies anymore. She is ignored by her selfish husband Albert (Rufus Sewell), who does not have sex with her or give any attention to her problems, dedicating his leisure time to play a virtual golf game in a special room in their fancy house. The psychoanalyst Carol (Amy Brenneman) unsuccessfully tries to help Nancy to resolve her emotional issues with therapy. When Nancy contacts the sick sadomasochist Louis (Jason Patrick) in internet, she schedules a meeting with him in Baltimore to release her from her painful life. They meet each other and have kinky sex, but along the days together, Louis falls in love for Nancy and tries to persuade her to stay alive.

"Downloading Nancy" is a disturbing, powerful and heartbreaking movie with a story apparently based on a true event. Yesterday when I saw this film, I felt very uncomfortable with the dramatic story of Nancy, a woman destroyed by sexual abuses in the childhood and adolescence, and rejection and lack of love in her marriage. The gorgeous Maria Bello performing a character without any glamor gives a performance that should deserve a nomination to the Oscar, if this ridiculous institution were slightly honest and serious. Rufus Sewell is amazing in the role of a selfish man totally indifferent to the emotional problems of his needy wife. Jason Patrick is also excellent and there is one specific scene absolutely gruesome when he has sex with Nancy and a piece of glass. The non-linear screenplay makes the difference in this film, disclosing the drama of the lead character through flashbacks and intelligent dialogs. This mature movie is only recommended for very specific audiences and the DVD should have a warning in this regard. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Distúrbios do Prazer" ("Disturbs of the Pleasure")