Amnesiac

Amnesiac

Twin Falls Idaho by Michael and Mark Polish propelled them into fame, and Northfork, their follow-up film, was even more impressive. Though lyrical, poetic and dramatically engaging, Northfork divided critics; however, those on its wavelength really connected with the movie. This is not the case with Michael Polish’s latest work Amnesiac which is frustrating and ultimately annoying.

The director’s last film barely made it onto any screens other than Big Sur; nevertheless, it had visual confidence that this artist showed in his previous projects even if they did leave one unsatisfied. Like Self/Less though much like self/less too much about nothing at all just another director for hire job for an artist who has talents too great for such mediocrity .

An empty highway frames a scene where two people exchange furtive glances while a girl presumably their daughter sleeps in the backseat; she stirs but music crescendos as they drive by unnoticed. Who are these people? Why are they so scared? Polish does good work establishing mood right off the bat– something feels off. Are they running from someone? They keep looking back and finally she screams.

Now we’re in an old house with not much furniture. In a poorly lit room lays a man (Wes Bentley), unnamed throughout story, he’s hurt doesn’t know who he is or what he’s done. A woman (Kate Bosworth), also unnamed, takes care of him: her hair is tight in a bun, she wears business shoes and attire; she closes all the shades in what appears to be only a bed room; clearly something isn’t right here. The music, the tone, Bosworth’s dead eyed delivery it all screams “Misery” situation: could this guy have been kidnapped by this woman now claiming to be his wife or something even crazier? And where’s the girl?

Weird things happen before the plot finds its Time to Explain Everything Act, and it’s this odd, Lynchian chapter of the movie that clearly interests Poland most. The Woman is constantly spewing non-sequiturs and random pieces of trivia (you’ll learn why you don’t see B batteries, for example), and Bosworth has an amazing way of saying things like “Elephants are dying of coronaries” in a blank, creepy affect. Of course the Man eventually realizes things aren’t what they seem with the Woman; of course he eventually finds a body in the cellar.

From here on out, though, Amnesiac kind of falls apart strained by feature length narrative imposed on short-film screenplay; there just isn’t enough story here for “Amnesiac,” and so it simply tears at the seams , particularly in these awkward inserts where some police officer answers phone calls that could be related to case that are just embarrassing and kill tone of rest.

“Amnesiac” has moments of B-movie chaos, and it’s too bad this sensibility didn’t take root more fully. One example: Bosworth dons a fur coat and wields an electronic hacksaw in a scene that should have been the Grand Guignol approach for the whole movie. Instead, “Amnesiac” lands in that nether region between gory, stupid fun and realism we don’t care about the Man and Woman (as they’re billed), and even less so as their story’s mysteries are revealed.

The film doesn’t provide it; neither does the filmmaking. Underneath all the dullness, there’s a lively performance by Bosworth and intermittent visual flair from Polish, who used to put such energy into every frame he shot. The rest of “Amnesiac”? Pretty forgettable.

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