Abuse of Weakness (FILM PREVIEW)
Abuse of Weakness
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Filmmaker Falls Prey to Con Man in Semi-Autobiographical Cautionary Tale
Catherine Breillat is
a feminist filmmaker famous for shooting sexually-explicit films bordering on
porn, although arguably from a woman’s perspective. Romance (1999), Fat Girl
(2001) and Anatomy of Hell (2004) are among her highly-controversial offerings .
Abuse of Weakness marks a bit of departure for the controversial iconoclast, as
it is a semi-autobiographical
drama revisiting an unfortunate chapter in her own personal life.
In 2004, she suffered a stroke which
left her partially paralyzed on the left side and in that very vulnerable
position soon fell prey to a notorious charlatan. While pretending to be her
knight in shining armor, the creep proceeded to pressure Catherine to write him
checks totaling over a million dollars.
The experienced thief was such a smooth operator that he managed
to drain all the cash out of her bank account before what was transpiring came
to the attention of any of her children. The philanderer simultaneously toyed with
Catherine’s affections for over a year, seducing her despite his having an
expecting wife and then a newborn at home.
All of the above is recounted in heartbreaking detail in Abuse
of Weakness, a fictionalized
screen version of director Breillat’s book of the same name. The poignant,
character-driven drama co-stars Isabelle Huppert as Maud (aka Catherine) and
Kool Shen as her duplicitous Casanova, Vilko.
The
picture paints a plausible picture of how a patient attempting to recover from
a life-threatening illness might be easily exploited by a conniving con artist without
a functioning conscience. In this case, the arrogant Vilko never exhibits the
slightest contrition, even when a humiliated Maud confronts him after finally facing
up to the truth. He’s more worried about his wife (Laurence Ursino) finding out
about their affair than about leaving his victim in such dire financial and
medical straits.
A cautionary tale depicting a shocking example of man’s inhumanity
to (wo)man.
Excellent
(3.5 stars)
Unrated
In French with
subtitles
Running time: 104 minutes
Distributor: Strand Releasing
To see a trailer for Abuse of Weakness, visit:
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