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Gift, The |
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Description:
A gay couple, shunned by the small town they live in, revive a vampire and must deal both with the 'gift' of immortality offered to them by the vampire. As if this isn't enough, they must also deal with jealousy and the homophobia in the small town they recently moved into.
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Qvamp says: Even though the characters weren't always believable, they were three dimensional (though a bit prone to throwing up their hands and sobbing for my taste). This showed a good comparison between how ignorant people treat 'monsters', be they gay or vampire. |
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THE GIFT (2001 - movie) Wow, what a powerful and unfortunately overlooked film! Easily one of my favorite Sam Raimi films ever!
Kate Blanchette is a widowed psychic who lives with her 3 young sons in the deep, swampy south. In addition to having to deal with barely surviving financially, she also has the unfortunate vision of the murder of a young woman (Katie Holmes). The film quickly becomes a 'who really done it?' after she accuses the wrong man and then sets out determined to mend her mistake... even at the risk of her own life... and possibly her children.
What a great little sleeper! Spooky but never overtly scary (with the exception of one good jump), this movie wisely plays down the supernatural aspect, which, in turn, makes the movie entirely plausible. Blanchette is delightful in a scruffy role of a truly honest woman, while Keanu Reeves brings new meaning to the word 'asshole.' I don't think I've hated a character this much since Paul LeMatte in THE BURNING BED. Reeves is the true essence of evil, again, as a human being with no supernatural qualities. Hillary Swank also turns in a painfully accurate performance as an abused housewife who truly looks like she deserves to live in a trailer. The entire cast, as a whole, works well.
As for the Queer Horror aspect, there aren't any overt homosexual characters per say. However, the isolation, bigotry, slander and frequent degradation Blacnhette's character has to endure for not being like everyone else can easily be attributed to the same form of phobia homosexuals deal with on a daily basis -- especially in the location where the story takes place. (I do believe, at one point, she is also referred to as a lesbian by townsfolk for no other basis than she has a 'gift' they don't.)
Die hard Raimi fans looking for THE EVIL DEAD will be disappointed by the subtlety of this moody film, but all others should definitely check out how powerful it is as a ghost story, a commentary on our society, the possibilities that some human DO have uncommon 'gifts/abilities,' a fantastic character study and an all around thorough murder mystery.
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