Unbelievable
Truth (1990)
It's no surprise this film came at the end of the 80's.
Upon a second viewing, with hindsight to guide us, "The
Unbelievable Truth" is surely a film with a late 80's
sensibility. The characters all represent different
aspects of that era. Adrianne Shelly's Audry is nihlism
and fear. Her father represents greed and big business.
Her mother represents honesty. Her boyfriend represents
sexuality and frustration. Mike, the mechanic, represents
ignorance. Pearl, Mike's girlfriend, represents a victim.
Robert Burke, as Josh, represents truth, human emotion
and spirituality, the only thing that was sorely missing
in the 80's. No wonder he dresses in black. He didn't
exist when this film was made. It's no surprise then
that the character has been in prison for 15 years.
He missed the 80's
"The Unbelievable Truth" is that we are all alive
on the planet and there is no meaning to it all. Worse
yet, it could all end. "The Unbelievable Truth" is that
people get all caught up in business, the deals, the
money, the greed, the high life, the party. That isn't
truly what life is about. Life is about love and truth
and emotion and honesty. Shelley's character knows this
at the beginning of the film but gets caught up in the
trappings of "business" throughout the body of the piece.
In the end, however, she is redeemed. She comes back
to her "senses."
The end of the film seems cryptic but becomes clearer
upon numerous viewing. Shelley's character listens again
for the sound of a nuclear explosion. But it isn't there.
Emotion and hopefulness have entered her life. Now,
all that is heard by her is the chirping birds and the
waves tumbling in. All she can hear is the unknown future.
But at least there is a future.
Hartley's direction is singular. His vision is rarely
disturbed by cinematic devices. Here, he avoids close-ups
and rarely uses long complicated shots. Instead Hartley
seems to stand back and simply allow the camera to show
us a shot and his actors to act. There are those who
will mistake the acting in Hartley style here for "bad
acting." It's not. Hartley's characters rarely show
emotion. They deliver his words in pure uncomplicated
verbosity. His puns, his wordplay and his comedic elements
bring the piece to life while his more serious aspect
of the work, which could be humorous if not handled
correctly, slide in under these moments. Adrianne Shelley
is particularly adept at personifying angst while Gary
Sauer emotes teenage libido and hopefulness with pure
exuberance. Together, they are dynamite. Robert John
Burke, meanwhile, underplays his part to perfection.
The cast in total always seems to strike the right chord.
Hartley is awesome. He takes filmmaking to another
level. His explores themes in Americana that range from
male/female relationships to nuclear annihilation -
and that's just in this film. "The Unbelievable Truth"
is that Hartley is an under appreciated American master.
Note:
The script mentions Moliere, George Washington, Abrahan
Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Thomas Payne.
New facts learned doing research for "Henry Fool:"
Hartley studied at University of New York at Purchase
where he met Robert John Burke. He got a $10,000 loan
to make "The Unbelievable Truth" from a bank that was
offering really low interest on loans that year.
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