Schepisi traces roots of family’s dysfunction in new film
Posted By Admin on January 15, 2012
Did you fly across the world to see me die? Or do you want money?
Thats the question self-centered matriarch Elizabeth Hunter (Charlotte Rampling) asks her daughter Dorothy (Judy Davis) in The Eye of the Storm.
Its a fitting question, considering its the very thing Dorothy and her brother Basil (Geoffrey Rush) are asking themselves when they return home, after years of being away, to see their estranged mother on her deathbed.
This lack of compassion for their mother in her final days may make these two grown children seem like horrible people, but Australian director Fred Schepisi, best known for his films Six Degrees of Separation and A Cry in the Dark, says its not that simple.
Their mother lived the life she wanted. She made the children do what she thought was right, which wasnt right for them. And she did all that but she didnt give them love, Schepisi says.
Theyre very fearful about coming back because they know theyre going to be reminded about all the things they didnt like but they have to because theyre not exactly well off and shes got the money, he adds with a laugh. In the end what theyre really looking for is to be loved the way they wanted to be loved as kids.
Based on the novel of the same name by Nobel Prize-winner Patrick White, The Eye of the Storm is both a tragic and comedic look at dysfunctional family relationships and the complicated emotions that arise when one of them is nearing the end of life.
Set in a suburb of Sydney, Australia in 1972, the story goes back and forth between Elizabeth on her deathbed and time spent at a family cottage years earlier.
These flashbacks provide insight into the strained relationship between the controlling Elizabeth and her children. It also sheds light on the ramifications this tension has had on the children in their adult lives, with Dorothy searching for love at every turn and Basil being unable to express emotions.
Dorothy finds a bit of peace for herself but really what she becomes is her mother, and Basil just doesnt deal with it but he does deal with it (in his own way), says Schepisi.
The children must also contend with how close their mother has gotten to her household staff, including the pretty young Flora (played by Schepisis daughter Alexandra), and a German dancer to whom Elizabeth is planning on leaving her inheritance.
In a character-driven film such as this one, the performances from the lead actors are everything and Schepisi knows he is fortunate to have assembled such an A-list cast willing to take such risks.
(The actors) work out very, very quickly if they can trust you. If they can trust you then they can take chances and they know youll never make them look ridiculous, youll never let them go too far but youll let them get as far as possible for the part.
Schepisi further challenged his actors when he chose to shoot one of the films most pivotal scenes — one where the children take their mother out to the park — on the first day of shooting.
That cements everything. Everything works up to that point and away from that point. I find that film is very organic, youve got to set a pattern and once you shoot one thing, everything changes.
Schepisi says all of the actors had read the book ahead of the time, and all came up with their own ideas from the book on their characters.
Everybody was engaged in this collaboration and thats what it was, a collaboration.
Schepisi hasnt made a feature film since 2003s It Runs in the Family, and says while he had to be convinced to take on The Eye of the Storm, once he read the book he was hooked.
I like to be challenged, I like to be taken down new paths, learn things while Im doing them but I know I really want to do something when you go, lsquo;Ah, images! he says. Ill probably fixate on three images I want and youll never stop me from doing it because they are my motivation.
Some of these powerful images include the opening scene with Rampling standing in the ocean wearing a soaking wet white dress, letting the surf wash over her, and Rush riding a ferry in the rain, contemplating his life, while the face of a giant clown statue looms in the background.
The Golden Globe-nominated director was also very interested in creating the world of 1972 Sydney and says capturing this point in time was crucial in order to allow movie goers to fully immerse themselves in the story.
People have come out of the theatre and they start to talk about the film, they give you a few compliments but … they really want to talk about their own families because the film has taken them to unexpected places and makes them consider their lives and their relationships.
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