CBreeze_2004

You don't have to get very far down the user reviews to find out this movie did not go over very well! But I wasn't disappointed with this effort.

There aren't many movies that hold my attention all the way through to the end. The "Beach House" actually did that for me. I found the overall filmmaking very good--excellent cinematography, well handled in the editing room, well scored. Very easy on the eyes. The cast is singularly attractive, with the exception of the antagonist--Paul, played by. Murray Bartlett. I felt that I understood what the writer and director were trying portray with Paul, but he never really pulled it off. Hence the tension between him and Emma never felt plausible or dangerous. Had the character been played by someone with a lot more "edge" and testosterone, the movie would have worked much better on the whole.

Willa Fitzgerald makes this worth watching all by herself. As difficult as it was to believe in Murray Bartlett, she almost overcame that by herself. Beautiful without being overwhelmingly so, she was very believable as a college student who wasn't really sure what she wanted and had a serious itch to push her boundaries to try and figure it out. A brief scene in which she tells Paul that she HAS stepped over the line in the past (with a T/A), was perfectly paced and convincing.

I first saw this film in the 1990s and have no recollection of the format. Given the history of the rights to this film (a story in and of itself), I'm surprised that I stumbled across it anywhere then. I never forgot it though, and whenever the subject of obscure art cinema films came up I would always say that it was 'my favorite' and ask if anyone else had ever seen it. Surprisingly, even those who were studying film in college and knew Colin Firth's canon well had not.

The latest DVD release is priceless for the addition of an original 6 minutes which were cut following the Sundance 1989 and Seattle Film Festival showings and the commentaries from director Martin Donovan and writer/producer David Koepp. Koepp's commentary is especially intriguing because it's presented as a wildly informative and entertaining discussion of independent film making--then and now--with A list director Steven Soderbergh (who'd premiered Sex, Lies, and Videotapes at the same Sundance Festival). As far as I can tell, Soderbergh had nothing to do with Apartment Zero's development, production, or distribution . . . but his insights are priceless. I watched this DVD with my 19 year old film student son, and he found Koepp's and Soderbergh's discussion more informative than any class he's had to date.

I won't try to reiterate the comments of other reviewers on this site-- particularly with respect to Firth's excellent performance--but I have to say something about Hart Bochner.

Bochner certainly was an inspired casting choice. Every time I've watched this movie, I'm left wondering why he didn't end up somewhere in the first tier of 90's lead male role authors. I can't remember seeing him in anything else, and was surprised to find that he appeared in the first Die Hard playing that lech that is trying to move in on Bruce Willis' wife in the early corporate party scene. As far as I can tell, he did some television work and directed a couple of not exactly memorable films (PCU?).

Bochner's character's introduction in the movie is at Firth's doorway, a set shot that has Bochner framed in identical clothing and pose as James Dean in a black and white immediately to his right. A challenging comparison that actually seems to favor Bochner. The camera definitely favors him throughout the film, which would seem to have made him an obvious choice for future studio productions involving male action characters. Did he turn them all down?

Apparently he and Colin Firth have remained very close friends to this day. Anyone have any idea why he didn't rise to the Cruise/Pitt/Clooney level?