Revolutionary Road Review

        This is my third Sam Mendes film that I have talked about. So far I’ve enjoyed his work. I haven’t had the chance to look at his Best Picture winner American Beauty or his two James Bond films. I feel that there’s a genre checklist that all directors have to check off to say that they’ve finally directed a specific film. Revolutionary Road is one of those films where you think it’s a romantic drama. That’s only if you base your notion on just the poster. 

1. Frank and April

        This film is based on the book of the same name by Richard Yates. The adaptation follows the main gist of the book. Which is that Frank and April are attempting to salvage their failing marriage. We see how they meet each other which is at a party. From there, constant bickering and an overall sense of wanting to become more than what they are derails a promising marriage. 

        I should note that the whole film takes place in the 50s. Encapsulating it is that constant jazz music plays when the couple are out with their neighbors. It gives the film an immersion that this is the time with where the story is at. Compounding is that Frank has a job within the city, and April is the typical stay at home mom. 

        I feel that it’s not all doom and gloom as one would think when they sit down and watch the film. There is a brief glimmer of hope that they just must move out and they’ll break out of the slump that is their marriage. What I find ironic is that with their neighbors the Campbells speak very highly of them. Even with the patriarch Shep having the hots for April, since he feels that he’s unhappy with his marriage. 

        Before I talk about the main theme of the movie, I have to talk about the breakout star in the film. Michael Shannon as John just steals the show, even though he appears in two scenes. Having seen Shannon in various films, the guy is a bulldog when he acts in a ferocious manner. Not in an over-the-top manner, but in a way where he speaks the truth to the main couple. The best moment is when he triggers Frank.

2. Deconstructing the Married Life

        With the films that I’ve watched by Sam Mendes, I’ve noticed a reoccurring thing that has popped up in his movies. Which is that he has this directing motif that is the deconstruction of norms. Such as in Jarhead which is a deconstruction of a soldier in deployment as an example. What I find interesting is that the problems that happen with Frank and April run in contradiction with how the 50s model of a family is supposed to run. 

        For instance, April suggests to Frank that the whole family move to Paris. In order for her to get a high earning job, while Frank do nothing. He’s at first opposed but is for it. Compounding the overarching problem is that Frank gets a promotion for a job he hates and puts the kibosh on the endeavor. 

        The reason why the whole movie is a deconstruction of how a family works is that they’re not perfect. Every moment they wish they could want something that is attainable, but not reachable. I feel it’s to comment on the American Dream, this idea where having the house and kids isn’t enough to satisfy what they really want personally. And I think it works since the whole idea is hogwash.

        More so that they commit atrocities that isn’t typical or standard with how a husband and wife are supposed to act. Both do things that is extremely taboo with what they did, especially April but I’ll leave it at that. It’s gutsy to show everything just go to hell with the two characters, and I’ll go on a tangent for the next to review to talk about why it’s taboo for a movie to acknowledge reality. In a sense why a couple breaks up is weird to American viewers. 

3. Overall

        Revolutionary Road is a great Sam Mendes film. It’s a romantic tragedy that only a few will enjoy and I will caution that it will trigger some people.