There are a lot of points one could hit while reviewing Steven Soderbergh’s debut film. There’s the fact that a 26-year old Soderbergh wrote the screenplay in 8 days on a legal pad while driving across the country. We could talk about how it won the audience award at Sundance, the Palme d’Or at Cannes, how it grossed over $36 million on its budget of $1.8 million, or how just 17 year after its release it was added to the United States Library of Congress’ National Film Registry. The film garnered Soderbergh his first Academy Award nomination and launched his diverse and prolific career. So let’s look back at the film that made the man, sex, lies, and videotape.
John and Ann (Peter Gallagher and Andie MacDowell) live in the muggy south–Baton Rouge to be more specific. They’re married but no longer have sex, which Ann is more or less okay with. Little does she know that John is having an affair with Ann’s sister. Ann’s naive world view is challenged when Graham (James Spader), a college friend of John’s, shows up. He is friendly, but has an aura of intelligence and mystery that gives reason for caution as well as intrigue.
Ann learns that Graham is impotent. As a way to exert power, or experience of semblance of connection, Graham records women talking about their sex lives. His hobby becomes an immediate interest to everyone who learns about it, often spurring change. The film explores Graham’s impact on John, Ann, and anyone else he comes in contact with. Spader’s performance is immaculate. He plays Graham with such precision that it’s hard to think of any other way he could have been portrayed. And this is made easier by MacDowell and Gallagher’s performance. It’s easy to imagine this film as a play for serious, heavy-hitting actors. Soderbergh cast these actors at the right time in their careers; they were familiar faces, but not enough to be distracting.
The plot sounds too simple: mysterious character arrives into a small town, upending the lives of everyone he becomes involved with. Conversation is the driving force here. The anecdotes, the irony, the subtle jabs–somehow Soderbergh hooks the audience with somewhat minute conversations that really help the audience understand the characters. Every word, gesture, and moment of silence is carefully placed. It’s the kind of thing that only a cohesive and trusting relationship between actors and director can provide. It’s also something only a confident filmmaker could pull off. The film has a narrative, yes. But perhaps more so, it’s a series of interactions woven together.
Secrets, deception, pasts, and futures are all present in this smart and smooth talkie. It’s a film that will reward revisits as viewers pick up on the nuances beneath the surface. Whether you are talking about the impact of this film or what actually happens in the film, it’s bound to ignite some conversation.
When the Berlin Wall fell in April of ‘89, East Germans crossed over to West Germany and saw that movie theatres were playing an American film titled sex, lies, and videotape. I can only imagination their reaction when they realized it was not some sort of sex thriller, but instead were met with a heady, smart, crisp film with an incredible screenplay.