The Rules of Attraction (***1/2)
review by Jon Waterman

It’s easy to sum up this film: Sex, drugs and, as Sean so often says, “Rock ‘n’ roll.” These may be the basic elements that drive the narrative, but the film is far from being as shallow.

The film starts at the end. We learn the fate of the majority of the characters as they wind up at “The End of the World Party.” The rest of the movie is devoted to showing us the earlier part of that college semester which leads them to their current states. The result is a fascinating ensemble dark satire of the post-high school years.

Before I rave about the good, I’ll get the not as good out of the way. In order to show that the film was taking the post-modern way out by going back in time, it shows a long series of actions played out in reverse. The concept is accepted and appreciated, but quickly wears out its welcome. I don’t need to see two or three minutes of smoke going back in a mouth or a couple walking backwards or a leaf going onto a branch. Pick and choose. We’ll still get it. Other than these overly long sequences, the novelty shots contained within the film are quite effective. The split screen coming together worked well. The rapid-fire video segment added an extra punch to that part of the story.

The other “bad” part was Fred Savage as “A Junkie Named Marc.” He actually wasn’t a bad performer, but he only appeared in one scene. The fact that his character was reduced to a cameo level left a bad taste in my mouth. I felt his part was there just to show that he’s still out there and he’s hip, too. He wasn’t trying to play a good role; he was after more work after this. A resurrection. This may not be true, but that’s how it came across to me.

Now on to the good. “The Rules of Attraction” is an intelligent satire (based on the book by Bret Easton Ellis). So much so, that the people that could identify with the characters in the film wouldn’t be the ones to watch it. And if they did, they may not truly understand the movie as a satire, but rather take it as pure drama. With the exception of the chaste Lauren (Shannyn Sossamon) and possibly the hopelessly gay Paul (Ian Somerhalder), each person is portrayed as being evil for having and acting on their animal desires. Without getting into a religious debate, I’ll simply say that for the purpose of the film, there should be nothing inherently wrong with some of the behavior these people exhibit. But the more innocent debauchery leads to the more dangerous and more emotionally destructive actions. Watching the sudden shift from one-night stands to faking deaths to drug deals gone awry makes the film the force and farce that it is.

Aiding in the enjoyment of the story are the wonderfully callous performances. James Van Der Beek (as Sean) shows he’s more than a repulsive teen idol by actually creating an inherently repulsive personality. The same basic framework appears in the acting of Jessica Biel (another teen sensation) and Kip Pardue (I don’t know him). Only one person was raw to the point of unbelievability. Clifton Collins, Jr. as the drug dealing Rupert went so over-the-top that I thought about fast-forwarding through his scenes (I guess that should have gone in the bad section with Fred Savage).

Director Roger Avary (“Killing Zoe”) has created a wonderful film looking into the deep recesses of the college psyche expressed in the extremes. Well worth watching to make you feel better about your own life.

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