Side Effects – does Soderbergh’s swan song end his career on a high note?

Steven Soderbergh has long made it apparent his dislike for how directors are treated in Hollywood. He has often struggled getting his vision to the screen, battling producers and studios who think his work too arty and not entertaining enough. Soderbergh has announced that his latest film, Side Effects, is to be his last (after this he has directed the made-for-TV film Behind the Candelabra, a HBO biopic of Liberace). So, is Side Effects a worthy enough film to end Soderbergh’s career on the big screen?

Emily (Rooney Mara) is a young woman who has long suffered with depression. When her husband Martin (Channing Tatum) is released from jail after he was imprisoned for insider trading for four years, things finally seem perfect. But soon she is struggling with her illness again and suffering more and more with suicidal tendencies. A visit to a new doctor (Jude Law) means a prescription for some new medication – a new drug on the market called ‘Ablixa’. However the side effects of this drug seem to bring on a whole new set of problems for Emily. And then, suddenly, everything spirals out of control…

I was dubious about seeing Side Effects. But about halfway through I was surprised to realise that I was enjoying it and that I was completely hooked into the story.  It was well-paced, enjoyable and it completely held my interest. But as with most Hollywood stories there is a twist in the plot. And it is this twist that will determine how much you will enjoy the outcome of the film. And indeed it meant that what for me began as a striking, entertaining film, became a mess of a convoluted plot. What could have been a nuanced discussion on the pharmaceutical industry and the profit it makes instead becomes a straight-out thriller, and a boring one at that. The twist itself is also entirely unbelievable, making Side Effects frustrating to watch after it has been revealed.

Furthermore the inclusion of this plot twist makes it seem as though writer Scott Z. Burns either couldn’t decide what he wanted to say, or that he wasn’t bold enough to say it. There is a small mention of insider trading and similar issues, hinting that Burns and Soderbergh might be commenting on the recession and capitalism. But this is again hidden beneath an implausible and increasingly ridiculous conclusion that makes the film feel like any other boring Hollywood thriller. Side Effects therefore seems to have been a huge missed opportunity for both Burns and Soderbergh.

The only aspects that seem to save the film are the solid performances, mostly from Rooney Mara as the damaged Emily. She is completely heartbreaking and wholly convincing as Emily begins to gradually fall apart. Jude Law as Jonathan Banks, her new psychiatrist, is also great as a man determined to uncover the truth behind Emily’s increasingly strange behaviour. And one other positive is that (as usual) the look of the film is stunning. Soderbergh employs his usual look used in his other films: luscious camerawork and yellow filters used throughout, which here creates a hazy look in order to reflect Emily’s psychological state. The soundtrack by Thomas Newman is also another positive element, Newman creating a beautiful and sweepingly emotional score to backdrop the film. However, the impressive performances, striking visuals and soundtrack can’t wipe the disappointment from your memory after watching Side Effects.

Soderbergh and Burns’ previous project together was Contagion, an effective and downright terrifying thriller that actually had something to say about a very prominent issue in the world. But Side Effects is nothing nearly as nuanced and thought-provoking as Contagion. With Side Effects it feels very much like Soderbergh wanted to create a different film from what he has made here. Had the story been something less Hollywood and something more of a critique on pharmaceutical companies and the profits they make , it would have been similar to his usual films and would in turn have been a worthy end to his oeuvre. Instead it is simply dull, predictable, and a bit of a mess. In my opinion Steve Soderbergh is one of the great auteurs around at the moment who is normally bold with his choices and not one to shy away from a complicated issue. And for this reason it will be a huge shame if this is to be his final film made for the big screen as it only feels like a Steven Soderbergh film in looks, nothing else. So here’s hoping he changes his mind about that retirement…

Contagion

Steven Soderbergh has always been a master filmmaker, creating films that not only look great but make the audience think too (ok, maybe not the Ocean’s trilogy…). His latest films, although critically successful, have had a harder time generating commercial success and have had difficulty reaching a wider audience. But Soderbergh’s newest film, Contagion, is turning out to be his most commercially successful film to date. After all, people love a good disaster flick.

Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) comes home to Minneapolis from a business trip to Hong Kong with what she thinks is just a simple bug or virus. It turns out to be something much worse… Soon the deadly disease is spreading fast and taking lives all over the globe. And as one character says: “It’s figuring us out faster than we’re figuring it out”.

Like Soderbergh’s other film, Traffic, this film also uses an ensemble cast and it works equally well here. Matt Damon is brill (I’m biased I know, but shut up) as Mitch Emhoff, Beth’s husband and a family man trying to do everything he can to keep him and his family alive.  And here’s another look to add to The Damon collection:

In fact, the whole ensemble cast is excellent – the standouts being Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Ehle, John Hawkes, Elliot Gould (and comedian Demetri Martin is also there for some weird reason…).

The one person who really distracts though is Jude Law as Alan Krumwiede, a blogger stirring fear and panic across the nation…complete with a really bad Australian accent. Basically he’s just a caricature – you can pretty much tell what his motives are just by looking at him. I’m not sure if writer Scott Z. Burns or Soderbergh intended it to be that way or if it was Law’s idea to play him like that. Either way, he doesn’t work as a believable human being.

As with all Soderbergh films it is beautifully shot and very, very stylish in parts…as well as suitably cold and clinical at other times. And the story is also good but seems somehow…incomplete. Because it’s such a huge cast and Steven Soderbergh is showing the outbreak from all perspectives (official figures trying to work out what to do and the scared public trying to survive) the film seems to run out of time to get the whole plot in and it ends, almost suddenly. Even though every one of the major cast is given equal screentime, it seems like there is more of the story left to tell.

This many perspectives idea isn’t necessarily a bad thing – imagine the story if it focused on just one family and how dull it would be (and which we’ve seen so many times before – compared to something multi-angled like this which we’ve rarely seen). Soderbergh and Burns have definitely achieved something great with Contagion, but it does feel like there’s room for many, many sequels. Not that they’ll do any.

A chilly ensemble piece that has resonance with our health obsessed world, you’ll enjoy watching it, but afterwards you’ll almost certainly be careful of what you’re touching…