SEPARATION CITY

New Zealand, 2009, 107 minutes, Colour.
Joel Edgerton, Rhona Mitra, Danielle Cormack, Les Hill, Thomas Kretschmann, Alan Lovell.
Directed by Paul Middleditch.

Separation City is a contemporary story about married couples in their thirties. Joel Edgerton and Joel Cormack portray an ordinary New Zealand couple, living in Wellington, with a daughter, he working as an adviser to a government minister. The other couple is from Germany, played by British Rhona Mitra and German Thomas Kretschmann. They marry in Germany but move to work in Wellington, she a cello player, he an artist.

In the first marriage, the husband is becoming bored and focused on himself. In the other marriage, the husband has been unfaithful, the wife catching him and leaving him.

There are other couples who are friends and they gather together for meals. The Joel Edgerton character sees Rhona Mitra at a concert and is smitten by her, looking for opportunities to be with her. One of the other couples is having problems, the wife leaving for another woman. The husband conducts men’s group discussion which all attend.

There are women’s discussions, men’s discussions – and, eventually, a visit to Berlin where the minister has to give a speech, where the cello player returns to Germany, the possibility of an affair at the hotel during the conference. In the meantime, the minister has arranged for Edgerton’s wife to have a surprise trip to Berlin.

With the collapsing of marriages, Edgerton meets a department friend who is also separated in a supermarket where they are buying equipment for their new flats. He calls it Separation City.

Edgerton is disillusioned when he discovers that the cello player was only interested in an affair, not love. There is a reconciliation sequence at the beach at the end of the film – with the thrust of the film focusing on love, honesty, repentance, commitment.

1. A New Zealand film? The atmosphere of Wellington? The cityscapes? The beach? The homes? The political background?

2. Colour photography, the city, the score? The contrast with the sequences in Berlin – the blue shading, performance in front of the blue-shaded sequences? The musical score?

3. The perspective? The thirtysomethings? Relationships, commitment, boredom, work, the roving eye, issues of happiness?

4. The moral perspective, the couples, their expectations, fidelity and infidelity, selfishness, truth, anger, regrets? Acceptance?

5. The focus on Simon, his voice-over, the initial wedding sequence, his comments about marriage and suitability, the ceremony, the informal touches? Happiness... but?

6. The passing of the years, Simon and Pam, their daughter? Ordinary life at home, at work, taking the marriage for granted?

7. Katrien and her story, her commentary? Germany, Klaus, the informality of the wedding, Klaus bringing the painting, on the bicycle? The move to New Zealand? His art and not succeeding? Her music? The concerts? Their family, the children? Katrien discovering her husband with the woman, leaving?

8. Harry, his friendship with Simon, with the others? His second marriage and his comments? Wry? His serving as a sounding board for Simon?

9. Keith, work, friendship, his wife, her performance at the table, leaving for another woman? His running the men’s group? His focus, his facilitating, his own liberation and behaviour?

10. The men’s group, everybody turning up, their friendship, discussions, their experiences, the new man, his antagonism towards Harry and throwing him in the pool?

11. The political background, the minister and his ineptitude? Flirting with the secretary? His staff? Drinks, talking? Going to Berlin, inviting Pam? His performance, the speech, starting over again? The party afterwards, his wife? The broken window and his taking care of things? Simon, his relationship with the minister, the rest of the staff, writing the speech?

12. Simon and Katrien, the concert, their meeting, the meals at the home, the lunch and its being interrupted by Harry and the others? The passionate relationship? His visit to her house? The plan for Berlin, the hotel room, the champagne, Pam arriving? The phone, Pam hearing Katrien on the phone? Their meeting, the sexual experience, Katrien saying that she adored Simon but did not love him? His disillusionment?

13. The Maori member of the staff, his sexual behaviour in Berlin, into Simon’s room? His comment on Separation City, the supermarket, the men and their buying things for their flats?

14. Harry, his comments, in Berlin, his helping Simon, confronting him with the truth? The final walk along the beach?

15. The secretary at the department, the minister and his ogling her? Her relationship with Simon? Helping Pam?

16. Simon, his bewilderment, finally on the beach, the meeting with Pam, their daughter, his acceptance of the reality of his situation? The reconciliation – yet his being a touch rueful?