Themes: Mothers and Sons, Rags To Riches, Crimes of Passion
Main Cast: Julianne Moore, Stephen Dillane, Eddie Redmayne, Hugh Dancy, Elena Anaya
Release Year: 2007
Country: US/FR/ES
Run Time: 94 minutes
MPAA Rating: NR
Plot
Adapted from the nonfiction book by Natalie Robins and Steven M.L. Aronson, Tom Kalin's Savage Grace recounts the true crime tale of the death of Barbara Baekeland. Stephen Dillane stars as Brooks Baekeland, the son of the man who invented Bakelite, one of the early forms of plastic. As the family fortune begins to decrease after years of wealth, Brooks marries Barbara (Julianne Moore), who desires to mingle in the highest social circles. They have a child, Antony, who is homosexual. Antony grows up to kill Barbara, in part because Barbara takes a personal interest in "curing" her son of his orientation. This was Kalin's first film since 1991's Swoon, a film about the infamous Leopold and Loeb murders. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
Critics gave Savage Grace mixed reviews. As of May 30, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 44 percent of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 32 reviews — with the consensus that "though visually compelling, the lamentable characters in Savage Grace make for difficult viewing."[1]Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 53 out of 100, based on 10 reviews.[2]
Sam Green
Barbara Baekeland's former lover, Sam Green, wrote an article pointing out elements in the film possibly misleading for those trying to read back to the reality inspiring it. Referring in particular to the scene of Barbara, her son Antony, and Sam having a ménage à trois, he wrote, "it is true that almost 40 years ago I did have an affair with Barbara, but I certainly never slept with her son, and nor did she, to the best of my knowledge. Nor am I bisexual... She started telling people she had had an incestuous relationship with her son as a way of 'curing' him of homosexuality...But I don't believe she had sex with Tony. I think she simply enjoyed shocking people."[3]
