DEMOLITION
US, 2015, 101 minutes, Colour.
Jake Gyllenhaal, Naomi Watts, Chris Cooper, Judah Lewis.
Directed by Jean- Marc Vallee.
While there is a lot of physical demolition going on in this film, especially in waving sledgehammers and breaking through walls as well as the destruction of quite a luxury house and its appointments, what happens is some psychological demolition.
The film opens with a sudden crash and the death of Julia, the wife of businessman, Davis, played with quite some intensity by Jake Gyllenhaal. He is in his mid-30s and the film offers an exploration of what can happen emotionally, psychologically, professionally in terms of the workplace, on a man able and unable to deal with shock and grief.
His father-in-law, played by Chris Cooper, has not always been supportive and becomes more and more bewildered by what Davis says and does, withdrawing from the company, going his own way.
An unusual, if strange, script device is that after the death of his wife, Davis tries to get an M and M bar from a vending machine in the hospital and it fails to come out. Davis notes and photographs the registration number and begins a very personal correspondence with the company, a device by which he can pour out some of his feelings to the anonymous recipient.
Davis visits the company, meets the boss, and is contacted by the personal services officer, Karen, played by Naomi Watts. She is in a relationship with the boss but is more concerned about her precocious young adolescent son, Chris, who is rebellious, concerned about his sexual orientation, critical of his mother.
One day, Davis passes workmen doing demolition work and pays them so that he can join them. He buys tools, clothing, and enters into the demolition work with great gusto. He writes more letters and Karen follows them up, inviting him to her house while her partner is away, enabling them to communicate (not sexually) and for him to start bonding with her son, giving him a salutary talk about appropriate and inappropriate use of the F word and listening to him about his identity worries.
As the film goes on, and Davis keeps imagining his dead wife present to him, it might seem that there is no way for him to go. A chance meeting with an old man who works on old carousels finally gives him a lead for some way of dealing with the death of his wife, the animosity of his father-in-law, and a philanthropic way of keeping his wife’s memory alive.
Some years ago, American psychologist, Carol S. Pearson, wrote a book about personal archetypes, Awakening the Hero Within. One of her life crises is that for authenticity, a crisis that comes in middle-age, and one of the archetypes she names is The Destroyer. Demolition is a fine illustration of what she was exploring with this archetype, the negative side where the destruction simply leads to collapse, but where the positive side leads to greater self-awareness and the possibilities for new beginnings.
Despite the seeming impossibility, the film does end with Davis appreciating some new authenticity and steps to a more positive future phase of his life. The film is directed by Canadian, Jean- Marc Vallee, known for The Dallas Buyers Club and Wild.
1. The title: destruction, possibilities of new beginnings?
2. An American story, the American city, the house and its modern style, offices, the streets, the building sites, the poorer areas, hospital? The city? The musical score?
3. Introduction of Davis and Julia talking, his seeming to be detached, the conversation, tension? The suddenness of the crash? In hospital, the impact of Julia’s death?
4. Davis, the aftermath of the death, the vending machine, failing? Noting the number, photographing it? The beginning of the writing letters, the enormous amount of detail, an outlet for his feelings? Device for the film? The consequences?
5. Jake Gylenhaal as Davis, his age, his career, marriage, as a character, his past, the relationship with Julia, with her father, mother? Whether her father liked him or not? In the business, the scenes in the office? The later revelation about Julia being pregnant, the abortion, her mother knowing?
6. Davis’s collapse, grief, anguish, not knowing what happened? Demolition of his psyche? His behaviour, opting out, rejecting his own house, at the funeral, withdrawing? Continuing letters to Karen? His visit to the company, the encounter with Carl? Karen making contact? His response, seeking her out, the close relationship, the Platonic aspects? Meeting Chris, Chris’s attitude, rebellion towards his mother, his language, the appropriate uses of ‘fuck’, Chris and his concern about his sexual or orientation? His behaviour, in the bathroom, the lipstick, clothes, lipstick on the mirror…? Davis and the discussions, his playing with Chris and creating the bond?
7. The establishment of the foundation, the interview with the contenders, the swimming champion? Davis’s response, inviting Karen to the social, Karen and her laughter at the winner because of his inappropriate comments to her, sexigts? Her leaving? Reactions?
8. Davis, his tools, fixing things? Passing the site with the demolition, paying the workmen to join in, the destruction of the house and its liberation for him, the nail in his foot?
9. Coney Island, the old man and the carousel, talking, wanting to repair it?
10. Carl, his return, clash with Davis, the fight, the warning? Karen leaving him?
11. Karen, Chris, his being bashed, Davis helping?
12. Davis and his offer to his father-in-law for a memorial? The transition to the renewed carousel, the ride? Everybody there?
13. Julia appearing to him throughout the film – and her being on the carousel?
14. Demolition leading to rebuilding of himself, his feelings, his personality, capacity for relationship?
