spasticfreakshow Review of A Thousand Kisses Deep

A Thousand Kisses Deep (2011)

turn A Ghost of Christmas Past on its head, make a retro fantasy art film

[7/10 · 27 July 2016]

SPOILER warning. Not a fan of a drama that's none too happy, but this one veers into fantasy and surreal film noir. The Ghost of Christmas Past, Present and Future are transformed into the non-threatening, vaguely endearing, elevator man. This time our time traveler is not a villain, but an innocent woman who's been terribly wronged, and only by seeing the whole picture can she ever make things right. The elevator man hopes she succeeds, but naturally, explains nothing. Our lead is not a hero; she is as confused as everyone else is shown to be - an accurate reflection of most people's skewed perceptions of reality. In contrast to Dickensian "Little Boxes" society, this world is dysfunctional reality. And indeed, her lack of self awareness is akin to Scrooge's. Yet the task set her by the elevator man is to defeat the antihero, and evolve along the way - and not INTO a hero either, but rather, merely a survivor with a dash of hope. All of the performances are wonderful and the entire film evokes nostalgia with perfectly classic characters and settings. The charm of the antihero, played by the ever lovable Dougray Scott, is only matched by his utter lack of scruples, which is why his character and the story which revolves around him is so believable. As a piece of fluid art, it slowly comes back around and coagulates as one solid whole, despite the disruptive leaps back in time, through showmanship in writing and directing - and the return to the constant controlled variable, the elevator.