It is a very common and perfectly natural aspect of life that we filter
everything we see through our previous experiences. This can make it a bit
difficult when we encounter something for which we have little or no basis of
comparison. This was my first thoughts as I watched the film ‘Purgatory House’.
Not only is it from the viewpoint of a fourteen year old girl but it was written
by a fourteen year old girl. I didn’t understand girls of this age when I was a
teenage boy; I didn’t understand them when my daughter was that age so I didn’t
know what to expect here. Needless to say I was extremely impressed by what I
witnessed. We are in a time now where teens lash out occasionally with violence
towards adults, their peers and themselves. The writer and star of this film,
Celeste Davis, chose another way to deal with her angst, she wrote a screenplay
about it. While this film is difficult, almost painful for an adult to watch we
should remember that once we where teenagers and the world seem so intense and
so very small. This young girl put together an imaginative view of an incredibly
complicated subject, teen suicide. Rather than give us just another after school
special Davis provides a glimpse into the inner most private thoughts of a young
girl on the brink.
Most films end with the death of the protagonist but for this one it is only
the start. Silver Strand (Celeste Davis) has just committed suicide by
overdosing on a combination of pills and acid. She finds herself in Purgatory
House, a place between heaven and hell where is must exist with other teens who
have taken their own lives. There is also a bizarre game show hosted by Saint
James (Jim Hanks) who is actually a vision of God as a transvestite. Win the
game and you go to heaven, lose and its hell for all eternity. Silver finds that
Purgatory House is sort of a consolation prize. Silver killed herself because
she couldn’t take being the goth outsider. At an age when peer acceptance is at
its peek Silver was shun because of how she dressed and acted. She took her life
because she saw no way to change. As she describes herself in one scene if she
was someone else ‘I wouldn’t like me either’. The irony is in Purgatory House
she is condemned to remain that way forever. In the drab house she is surrounded
by other ‘losers’. There is an unending supply of drugs of all sorts but they
are no better at numbing the pain and confusion as they were back on earth.
Silver is also forced to watch EarthTV, a voyeuristic television show which
displays how life goes on back on Earth without her. Another aspect of the
unending sameness is she also has to wear the same clothes and makeup as she had
on when she died. For adults who wear suits and ties to work every day this may
not seem so bad but consider this point from the view of a teenaged girl who was
bombarded by fashion trends almost every waking moment. Silver took her own life
to escape but now finds that this is what she must endure forever. Silver begins
to realize a few things as she watches her family in the aftermath of her death.
While alive she felt isolated and resentful of her father (Howard Lockie). Now
she sees that he was devastated by his daughter’s suicide. The concept of
purgatory was not in the Bible, it was invented by the Catholic Church. In this
film God thought it sounded like a good idea so He decided to give it a try and
suicidal teens seemed like a perfect venue.
I have always been a big fan of experimental film. After watching literally
thousands of films it is refreshing to see someone take a chance on being
different. While watching this film you have to remember that it is not only the
freshman efforts of Davis and director Cindy Baer but that this work was an
experiment. They had an idea, put it together and made the film. The film works
because of the reasons many object to it. It is not polished. Most screenplays
are worked over and refined word by word. Here the dialogue flows at times
almost incomprehensible. If you can remember back to your own teen years this
was how you thought, in random streams of words, images and ideas. A more
refined script or production would have ruined this film completely. This is a
view of a lonely, depressed and self destructive teenaged girl. Trying to make
it a refined film would remove it from what it tries to tell the audience. As a
parent of a girl this film frightened me. While my daughter is now beyond the
tumultuous teen years I worry about the fathers out there whose children are
facing what Silver could not endure. For teens watching this film hopefully they
can take away the concept that life is precious and while you are alive there is
always a chance to change.
All things considered this film also demonstrates the potential of Davis and
Baer with its technical presentation. The story is told in three distinct
timelines; the events leding up to her suicide, immediately after her death and
a couple of months after being sentenced to Purgatory House. Each timeline has
its own unique visual style. Life on earth is shown in true color. Flashbacks
are in black and white. Finally, Purgatory House is in filtered colors. There
are also title cards that show exactly when the scenes are taking place. The
film has some rather cheap looking animation thrown in. Instead of taking me out
of the moment this just made the whole film seem more imaginative for me.
Most of the cast underplays their roles. Considering the theme of the piece
this actually worked for me. From a teens perspective the only viewpoint that
matters is their own. Celeste Davis is simply brilliant. Sure she has a long way
to go to hone the craft of acting and writing but for her tender years she is
well on her way to great success. She wrote this story from her inner most heart
and it shows. She was also the only choice to play Silver on the screen. She
doesn’t act from any classes or method she just presents her character in an
open and honest fashion. Jim Hanks, brother of the far more famous Tom, is great
here. He plays the drag queen God with flair and panache.
Image Entertainment may be best known for their month blitz of DVD release
announcements. They are one of the most prolific DVD distributors out there and
as such you might have missed this title in their announcements. This would be a
shame since this film deserves to be watched and owned. The video is in 1.78:1
non anamorphic and is true to the intent of the director. The Dolby 5.1 audio is
wonderful. It enfolds the room and offers the intense soundtrack with clarity
and power. There re several extras included. There are two making of featurettes
that go beyond the typical ‘we did this then we did that’ format. It is almost a
class in how to make an independent film. Of course, since this film is targeted
for the younger set there is a music video. There is also some notes by Davis
and some deleted scenes to round things out. This is film to watch as are the
star and director. They are only going to increase in their respective crafts
and this is a great first look at their talents.
Posted 02/08/07