Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Fade (2007)
Director: Anthony Stagliano
Movie review
From Time Out Chicago
Early in this incredibly annoying film, insomniac Arthur muses in his tape-recorded diary that “if we are here to learn more about me and more about this disease, wouldn’t it be more prudent, more efficient to contain here a less-filtered me?” And that’s what Stagliano does, too, offering us an unfiltered set of film-school David Lynch-isms. The chronology goes beyond jumbled into a less-organized terrain; there are surreal dream sequences; an unidentified couple tangos through the opening credits; and Arthur spends an inordinate amount of time squirming around on the floor. Hell, we even get that old standby, the guy watching a television on which there’s nothing but static.
There’s some sort of a story here about Arthur’s deadly affliction, a case of “fatal familial insomnia” (a real but extremely rare condition), but Stagliano’s approach is so disorienting that you’re likely to get to the half-hour mark before you even realize that Arthur’s problem is sleeplessness and not something more conventional, like, say, schizophrenia. By the time Weiss shows up as a doctor who is simultaneously stupid and patronizing, you’ll be inclined to like him because at least his dialogue makes some sort of sense. Let’s just say it’s a long 74 minutes.
Author: Hank Sartin
Time Out Chicago Issue 166: May 1–7, 2008
Cast & crew
Director: Anthony Stagliano
Cast: David Connolly, Sarah Lassez, Michael T Weiss full cast
Duration: 74 mins
US Release: May 2 2008
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Has David Cronenberg turned tame?
Has director David Cronenberg veered too far from his radical and bloody roots with new film 'A Dangerous Method'?
The 10 worst date movies
Just in time for Valentine's Day, we present ten of the least romantic films ever made
Where to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films
Find out where to watch 2012's Oscar-nominated films in London cinemas
10 unlikely badboy biopics
Featuring Phil Collins, Jeremy Clarkson, Nick Clegg, David Starkey and a host of other unlikely subjects
Interview: Sean Durkin on 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
The first-time director of the brilliant new thriller discusses religious cults and robot boxing
Pop-up cinema for Valentine's Day
Side-step romantic clichés with some alternative Valentine’s viewing






What do you think?
Post your review now