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"Stigmata" is one of those films that has its share of flaws in terms of story and details, but I found it so visually fascinating that there wasn't a moment where I wasn't stunned by the images onscreen. This success is mainly due to the film's cinematographer, Jeffrey L. Kimball("Top Gun", "True Romance", etc). I'll talk more about his contribution to this picture later, but I can certainly say that he's definitely a talent to watch. The story starts with Frankie Paige(Patricia Arquette) recieving a package from her mother. Included in the box is an old rosary that Frankie picks up, then forgets about as she goes out to face the day. Within hours, she has the first "stigmata"- 2 very deep puncture wounds in her wrists. Of course, her friends think that she's nuts and the doctors who treat her at the hospital think she's deeply disturbed as well. As they treat her, they find nothing wrong with her and are baffled at what has caused her injuries. Coming home after having facing another "stigmata" appear when she's out at a club with friends, Frankie has another attack on the subway- only this time a priest views what happens and tells others what could be going on with the young woman. Another priest(Gabriel Byrne) is sent in to investigate what could be going on and while at first he can't or doesn't quite want to believe what he's seeing, but more and more, it looks as if the young woman, who is not religious, is becoming deeply possessed. Although I'm sure that there are details in the way that this film portrays religion that are inaccurate, I still found that the performances were definitely good enough to keep me interested in what the film had to say, inaccurate or not. Arquette is especially good as the young woman becoming possessed- the character is not overplayed and while the role is serious and dramatic, it's not completely without warmth and a little humor. I liked the character and definitely found her performance engaging. Same for Byrne, who is definitely strong in the role of the priest sent to investigate. Outside characters are less fully realized, though. The film, as I mentioned before, is visually dazzling. There is an incredible use of light and colors throughout. Colors are sometimes cold and muted, sometimes warm and vibrant. Streets look wonderfully grey and wet, and other camera tricks add to the amazing visual style that this film presents. Although the camerawork is nothing less than breathtaking, the editing does tend to get a little too much at times, cutting the film at the high rate of speed of an MTV video every so often. Sometimes this works for the film, but mainly, it breaks it up a little too much- I would like to have studied a lot of the images longer. Still, this is really a wild looking film that brings forth a really original, excellent visual style. The only other problem I had with the picture was the hard rock soundtrack, which is not something that this film needed. The visuals certainly do the job of creating the tone and mood well enough, I didn't need the rock soundtrack rumbling through- the picture would have worked better without it. Although the story does occasionally get a tad bit slow here and there, the impressive visuals and strong performances definitely made "Stigmata" quite an enjoyable thriller. *** BACK TO THE SITE: Listing Of DVD Special Sales Back To A Guide To Current Film A List Of Current/Upcoming DVD For Sale Soundtracks For Current Films |
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