Tag: Aidan Quinn

Ghosts stories are becoming a popular focal point for filmmakers again, experiencing what may turn out to be the early stages of a resurgence such as we’ve seen with vampire stories. The interesting thing about ghost stories however, is that there really are no set in stone rules by which to follow in regards to the lore. Simply put, ghost stories have virtually no boundaries and THE ECLIPSE certainly proves this point.

The story takes place in Ireland and follows a driver named Michael Farr (Ciarán Hinds) as he assists at a literary convention. Michael still mourns the unfortunate death of his wife while raising two children by himself. During the convention, Michael meets a visiting British novelist of ghost stories named Lena Morelle, played by Iben Hjejle (HIGH FIDELITY). The two quickly develop an intimate friendship as Michael also struggles with the feeling that he is being haunted by his not yet dead father-in-law’s ghost.

While Michael and Lena grow closer, Lena finds herself the subject of another man’s obsession. Aidan Quinn plays a best-selling novelist named Nicholas Holden, whom as a result of a previous one night stand with Lena, now seeks to seal the deal. Surprised by this, Lena attempts to make clear to Nicholas that she had no interest in pursuing a relationship with him and Michael inevitably is drawn into the drama.

THE ECLIPSE was written and directed by playwright Conor McPherson (THE WEIR, THE SEAFARER). While as a playwright McPherson is highly acclaimed, I fear his attempt at crossing over into film is less than successful, but does show potential with practice. McPherson clearly has a handle on dialogue and directing actors, an obvious talent carried over from theatre, but his vision as it relates to the image on screen, how to construct the frame and how the big picture should come together needs improvement.

I’ll be frank with potential audiences now. I really did not enjoy this film. Personally, I found the pace unnecessarily slow, the story was dull and I never truly connected with or felt empathy for any of the characters. There were far too many empty scenes, filled with silence that are meant to be creepy. Instead, these scenes fall flat and pull the viewer out of the moment. The haunting elements of this story are few and far between. The relevance of the ghost of Michael’s father-in-law is, so far as I can tell, a plot device to bring him closer to Lena, but ultimately just gets in the way.

The film feels, for the majority of it’s running time, about as exciting as the average Merchant Ivory film, but in the handful of scenes when ghost haunts Michael there is a disruptive shift in tone utilizing typical genre scare tactics, with the “ghost” bursting out of the darkness or through the floor boards grabbing at Michael’s ankles. Likewise, the make-up effects used are better suited for a zombie flick than for a ghost, especially in a film where the more traditional concept of A CHRISTMAS CAROL ghost visuals would be more appropriate.

The performances stand out as the most successful aspect of McPherson’s film. Ciarán Hinds (THERE WILL BE BLOOD) deservedly won the Best Actor prize during the film’s premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival and Aidan Quinn was well cast in the role of an arrogant, obsessed writer fixated on a woman with no interest and uncontrollably driven to drinking and hostility.

In all fairness, THE ECLIPSE was not all bad. It will have it’s audience, but that audience will likely be small. Fans of paranormal or supernatural stories should view cautiously, because this is not that kind of story. THE ECLIPSE borrows and implements some basic ghost story tactics but uses them sparingly. These tactics are used to tell a story of burgeoning friendship with the potential for romance that arises from a melancholy shared by Michael and Lena.

THE ECLIPSE will screen at the Tivoli on Sunday, November 15th at 9:15pm during the 18th Annual Whitaker Saint Louis International Film Festival.