"Savage Grace" is based on a famous murder that captured the attention of America in the early 70's. It has all of the ingredients that the daily newspapers thrive upon: Cheating, scandalous sexual escapades, elitist snobbery and did I forget to mention scandalous sexual escapades?
Barbara Daly was a successful model who wanted to translate her fame to the silver screen. She failed at that but hit the proverbial money jackpot when she landed Brooks Baekeland as her husband. Baekeland was the grandson of Leo Baekeland, the founder of Bakelite Plastic, so their life together was one of extreme privilege. They had a son, Antony, and it is the relationship between mother and son that all else circles around.
"Savage Grace" opens in the 1940's, at the time of the birth of Antony (Eddie Redmayne). Mother (Julianne Morre) dotes on him adoringly when she isn't trying to mingle with the rich and famous, bedding as many of them as she possibly can. Translated, that means she doesn't spend all that much time with her son, at least not until he is a bit older. On the other hand, Brooks (Stephen Dillane) shows little interest in Antony or Barbara, or for that matter anyone at all. He appears to be content to sneer his disapproval at everyone and everything.
Eventually Brooks cheats back at Barbara. This behavior sends her into a tizzy. Never mind that she has been living the life of a prostitute, minus the payments. She sinks into a deep depression but finds comfort in the arms of Antony. Refer to Oedipus for further detail on their 'special' relationship. Antony is a fairly devout homosexual but mother knows best.
"Savage Grace" has an ever-present feeling of moodiness. This can be attributed primarily to director Tom Kalin, who never met a smoke ring he didn't adore, and the standout performance by Ms. Moore. It's a shame that she could be working alone for all of the help she gets from the rest of the cast. They can only muster disdainful looks, blank stares, poses and zero personality. When she is not on screen, the film grinds to a nearly full stop. Then again, even when she is on screen, the pace isn't exactly scintillating.
Kalin makes a mistake by keeping it tortoise-like, creating the feel of an atrocious Elizabethan novel. When a film that examines topics and themes like these can't even ignite a spark of energy or reaction from its audiences you know that something has gone terribly wrong in the translation. What we are left with is neither savage nor graceful.
