Customer Reviews

Peacock

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

As you can see by the previous reviews, the opinions are greatly varied. They all have merit but I have to say I liked it more than I didn't like it.

As for the issue of multiple or fractured personalities, I don't have the expertise to say whether or not they exist, but it is the crux of this film so, depending on your views on the matter, you may need to suspend your disbelief.

Yes. You get, right off the bat, the strong connection to Psycho. Abused son plus dead mom equals crazy son. This son, played by Cillian Murphy will make or break this one for you. Susan Sarandon is present but she's doing what she can with a rather small part. Bill Pullman seems unnecessarily weird and Ellen Page does a very good job even though she's only in a couple of scenes. This is Murphy's movie. The way he plays the parts of John and Emma, I felt, were tremendous. He's screwed up and trapped in a self imposed prison. Through a trick of fate he almost finds a way out through his alter ego Emma. But you see the torment in him and you realize how precarious the situation is. One false move and the whole thing comes crashing down.

The writer/director Michael Lander ripped a couple of pages out of the David Lynch book of film making but as I tend to like Lynch, I wasn't at all bothered. It's a good idea for a movie and all aspects of the production are professional. The soundtrack is way cool and the bones don't show. This is a good, solid, imaginative film. It clocks in at 90 minutes so it won't tax your patience.

But beware. This is not for the casual viewer. If you're into popcorn kind a flix this may not be your cup of tea. If way off beat films are your poison, give it a shot.

The plot of the movie is a dark pscychological thriller without your usual graphic gore and expected hollywood shocker ending. The story deals with an alter ego or split personality in a man that was abused as a child by his mother. Murphy's performance as Emma is superb. He makes you believe you are watching the transformation of a beautiful, shy and soft spoken woman into a secure, assertive one. I cannot think of any other actor who could have pulled this off as beautifully as he did, since he does have an incredible talent and androgynous features with wig and drag. If you want to watch a great and unique performance, you wont be disappointed.

I saw the preview for this movie and then bought it the same day. I like it, though it does remind me of Psycho. The guy has a split personality, always fun to witness, and doesn't know what the other is doing. He was more creepy as himself than as his mom/wife. Susan Sarandon and Ellen Page both did a fine job in this film as well. It's creepy and strange, so of course this movie is good enough to watch and enjoy.

We see a woman busy doing her chores one morning, the last of which is to make a sandwich and leave a note on top of it. Then she goes into the bedroom, takes off the wig she is wearing, and the next thing we know we are watching John get dressed for work. "Peacock" might be a title meant to symbolize the main character played by Cillian Murphy, but it turns out to be the name of the town in which John Skillpa and his alter-ego Emma are living their quiet but divided life. It turns out that John is a momma's boy raised by a not so nice mother. She always took care of him and in the wake of her death "Emma" arrived to take momma's place. The arrangement works quite nicely. John goes off to his dull job in the basement of the town bank, eats the lunch Emma made for him, and dutifully picks up things at the store as instructed by her note. Everything is working fine, and then one day, as Emma is hanging up the laundry, a caboose from a passing train ends up in the front yard. To say that things will never be the same again for John and Emma is a gross understatement. Neighbors meeting Emma assume she is John's wife, the owner of the bank (Keith Carradine) is running for mayor and sends his wife (Susan Sarandon) to set up an event on John's front lawn, and then there is Maggie (Ellen Page), a call girl who Emma learns had been receiving money from John's mother. Curiouser and curiouser.

I checked out "Peacock" because it had Ellen Page in it, and after "Hard Candy," "An American Crime," and "Juno," I am interested in seeing anything she happens to be doing. I had never heard of the movie before it showed up in our local Redbox, because for some reason it never received a general release despite the notable cast (which also includes Bill Pullman and Josh Lucas), and when I poked around to find out more about the film I found several suggestions that "Peacock" is a horror film, a label that I do not really find appropriate, despite what the obvious allusions to "Psycho" might suggest. Director Michael Lander, who also co-wrote the film with Ryan O Roy, calls it "an internalized psychological horror film," and that is certainly on the mark. John wants his life back, while Emma is finding that she might actually have a life. The question at the core of this 2010 film is what John and Emma are going to do about each other. As the film's tag line puts it, "If only he knew what she was doing." Your feeling is that things are going to end badly, but you want to hold on to hope because John has clearly been victimized by his dead mommy dearest.

As you would suspect, Murphy makes a decent enough looking woman, but there are times when you find it hard to believe that nobody in town picks up on the fact she is a he. That being said, the plight of his characters is enough to find yourself caught up in his quickly deteriorating situation. The story is set in rural Nebraska in the 1950s, when quirky neighbors were more readily accepted and the idea of a local transvestite would never occur to anyone, even if they had been to the big city (which would have been Lincoln). "Peacock" is an interesting little film, where you will find yourself curious to see how it plays out. The special features on the CD consist of four brief deleted scenes, a 20-minute featurette about making the film, and an alternative ending. As a general rule I abhor alternative endings because I like filmmakers to have the courage of their convictions for the story they are telling (Imagine alternative endings for "Gone With the Wind" or "Casablanca" and try not to throw up), and I have to say in this case the seeing the other ending only confirms my feeling for the original conclusion because I liked the way things played out with all the attendant irony. The alternative ending is arguably more ambiguous, but with this particular narrative letting things play out to a conclusion that is no less tragic hits the right final note for me.

Despite its phenomenal cast, PEACOCK went almost straight to video, and you'll simultaneously see why it was so hard to put this over in usual theatre release but also why such a stellar group of actors agreed to do it. It's a one-of-a-kind work, and it goes in directions even most other psycholological thrillers don't ever really go to. As with PSYCHO, it's about a very lonely young man who childhood mistreatment by his mother has warped him into assuming another, female, persona: but the film makes this clear from the beginning sequence, so the suspense doesn't depend on the revelation at all. What it depends upon instead is the tricky relationship between the two personae essayed by the great Cillian Murphy, the maladjusted and isolated John Skillpa, and Emma, the more adventurous and warmer female identity he creates who initially cares for John, preparing dinners for him with loving notes attached. The two are able to live together in some harmony in their small Nebraska town of peacock until a railway accident allows a caboose to smash through the Skillpa back fence, bringing the outside world into John/Emma's life, and presenting the threat of exposure. Complicating things even further is that John and Emma react to this threat in very different ways, with John unaware of what Emma does until he's later told by the townspeople who have no idea the two are the same person (they assume instead Emma is his wife). Eventually John and Emma's roles become antagonistic as Emma begins to identify more and more with the intelligent mayor's wife (Susan Sarandon), who runs a shelter for abused mothers and suggests to Emma the possibility of attaining what she's always wanted: a child.

The whole thing would be worth seeing just for Murphy's performaces in the two roles. Murphy is so incredibly skillful and intelligent that unlike most actors he doesn't need to make John and Emma wholly opposites: both of them are incredibly shy, and run from whoever tries to make conversation with them. But as the narrative proceeds you not only begin to see how different the two selves really are, and how Emma, who initially seems more likable than John, actually presents a greater danger to both identities and to other people as her plans proceed. In the smaller but crucial role of the mayor's wife--a kind and sympathetic but somewhat forward woman--Susan Sarandon is so superb she holds her own with Murphy on the screen, which is no small feat; by comparison, Ellen Page, in her own right a terrific young actress, just cannot compete with either of them as a young mother whose problems concern both John and Emma. The film has some holes in its narrative, and the train accident in the script was just too expensive for the film's small budget to handle convincingly; and its offbeat nature ensures that not everyone will like this. But its terrific acting and its evocative unsettling cinematography, which evokes both the claustrophobic nearness as well as the beauty of a Midwestern small town, make this more than worth a look.

The dictionary defines Dissociative Identity Disorder as a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a condition in which a person displays multiple distinct identities or personalities (known as alter egos or alters), each with its own pattern of perceiving and interacting with the environment'. The disorder is not genetically based, but rather the result of a severely abusive childhood often associated with sexual abuse and markedly disturbed parenting experiences. PEACOCK is a little film that despite a superb cast of some of our strongest actors and a fine script by writer/director Michael Lander and Ryan O Roy never was seen in theaters but instead sent directly to DVD. Hopefully this fact will not deter audiences form renting or buying this film: when the quality of films that fill the theaters with 3D cartoons, gross-out pseudo-adult comedies, and CGI horror exercises that grow more droid-like with each year are ultimately evaluated by serious film buffs, then movies such as PEACOCK will eventually come into their own.

Peacock, Nebraska, 1950s, and everything is bland and perfect: people work at their jobs, greet each other, seemingly knowing everything that goes on in this tiny town. In this placid place John Skillpa (Cillian Murphy) rises every morning at the same hour, eats a breakfast prepared for him and accompanied by little notes, goes t work at the bank where he is a quiet reclusive but wholly dependable exemplary employee. His supervisor (Bill Pullman) depends on his punctuality and thoroughness, and his boss Connor Black (Graham Beckel) notes is solid reputation as an important employee. No on inquires about his strange house where he lived with his psychotic mother hidden from the town: since childhood John had suffered beatings and abuse and as he grew to maturity his sick mother forced him to have intercourse with a young girl Maggie (Ellen Page) while she watched, and when Maggie gave birth to Jake the mother supplied Maggie with money to stay away from John. A year ago John's destructive mother died and John's fractured psyche became divided into two characters - John the regimented worker and Emma (Cillian Murphy en trasvesti) who serves John with wifely functions - and it is John the town knows until a strange train accident occurs, releasing a caboose into the backyard of the Skillpa home while Emma is hanging laundry. This 'introduction' of Emma is noted by nosy neighbors, by the sheriff Tom McGonigle (Josh Lucas) who finds John the next day and explains he will help John and his 'wife' get reparations from the train company.

The train accident and the associated photo of Emma at the scene opens the town to her 'existence' and events begin to change: Emma is visited by Maggie who learns of John's son Jake an offers help to Maggie; the town's mayor Ray Crill (Keith Carradine) wants to use the Skillpa residence for a party for his campaign for Senate and Ray's wife Fanny (Susan Sarandon) befriends Emma and hopes the proposed benefit will aid her involvement in her shelter for young mothers. The crisis polarizes the two aspects of John/Emma: John wants for everything to return to the way it was, Emma wants to help Maggie and Jake in any way she can. The Dissociative Identity Disorder begins to reassemble the real John Skillpa: one of the two forms of the personality must be discarded and it is this choice that provides the rather startling conclusion to this enthralling film.

Cillian Murphy gives a bravura performance as John/Emma, so much so that we the audience can understand every nuance of this divided person. All of the roles - Susan Sarandon, Ellen Page, Josh Lucas, Keith Carradine and Bill Pullman - are played with the finesse we have grown to expect from these fine actors. The cinematography is by Philippe Rousselot and the effective music score is by Brian Reitzell. The director Michael Landor is new and as a debut film he has produced a work that is deserving of special recognition when it comes to awards time. When a cast such as this one opts to participate in a little independent film for little financial compensation, we should pay attention. This is an extraordinary film, a film that deserves a very wide audience. Grady Harp, July 10

For me, Peacock was a jarring and intense work of art. The story burns slow and steady, allowing most of its action to reside within the thoughts and emotions of its lead character, John Skillpa. Skillpa is a man divided unto himself, hidden from himself, and ultimately at war with himself. Cillian Murphy offers some pretty amazing work here, and if you enjoy character studies then you're in for a real treat. What is equally impressive though is the work of the director. Peacock felt like moving through a Norman Rockwell painting that had gone terribly wrong; a serving of grandma's apple pie, only the apples are poisoned. Not wishing to spoil any of the plot I would say that if you enjoy subtly and nuance in your stories, and if you like the idea of screams turned into whispers, then you'll have much here to love.

This is nearly a great little movie. Hitchcock fans will have fun with it.

Peacock is a bird who can't fly. (That is, by the way, the stupidest airline logo ever. The airline who did that went away, it got swallowed up (notice the next bird pun?) by a larger rival with a bird logo of a flying animal. If you want to know which airlines I am talking about, ask me.)

Peacock here is a place in Nebraska, of 800 people. We are in the 1950s. Please think of Norman Bates. Then compare Anthony Perkins to Cillian Murphy. My opinion: Murphy is far and away the better actor. Have you seen Murphy's transvestite in Breakfast on Pluto? You should!
This guy is versatile. Look at his IRA activist in the Wind in the Barley (the title was a little different, can't remember now). Look at his terrorist in Red Eyes (title?). Look at his hopeless bossman's heir in Inception. The man is good.
He is many people if he wants to, and that is what he does here. He is John and his wife Emma. John has Mamma problems like Norman Bates. Once his mamma dies, he 'meets' Emma. Nobody else in Peacock knows Emma until a train derails and nearly knocks her off.
That complicates life for John and Emma. John is a regular if shy bank clerk. Emma is an unknown person. The accident makes her a star, by accident. She comes out. Trouble starts.
(I think John is by far the creepier of the two characters.)

You wonder for a while if this is gonna be a thriller or not. Spoiler: it is one. I tell you nothing more.
I liked the film a lot, but I withhold a star for this reason: there is a part for a young woman who had a certain relation with John and his mother, and who is the catalyst for Emma's unravelling. That part is entirely unrealistic and wrong. It may not be the actress' fault (E.Page), but it surely is the director's.

I was surfing around reading what different people consider to be their favorite movies, and this was listed on a "Top Movies of 2010" site. I know why now that I've seen it!

It feels like a twist on Hitchcock's "Psycho" ... crazy-guy-because-of-crazy-dead-mother ... but this is no rip-off or modern retelling of an old story. You're let in on the "the secret" almost immediately, and it doesn't take away from the suspense of trying to figure out what's going to happen.

Cillian Murphy was amazing, and the cast of other acclaimed actors were as well (which was no surprise to me). I don't believe I've ever seen a movie with either Susan Sarandon or Ellen Page that I didn't like.

Movies with polarized reviews are fascinating. Peacock is probably not for the hyper-stimulated, impatient viewer demographic who fast-forward between action scenes. That largely explains the poor reviews I've seen thus far. If you prefer a provocative, intriguing, albeit somewhat dark psycho-thriller flick that keeps you guessing until the end, try Peacock. The "special features" also provide an alternate, even darker ending. Either way, this picture is far more about the battles of the mind than the battles of the street.

Backed up by a superb cast, the primary drama here is the guessing game created by Cillian Murphy's two alters: as they evolve throughout the film, one regresses, the other appears to blossom ... yet one is left to wonder until the end. These dissociative personalities are brilliantly played by Murphy, who deserves at least an Oscar nomination.

I'm one of many who appreciate the director's courage in avoiding gratuitously obvious violence. Hitchcock the master showed that the best thrillers are subtle and indirect. It leaves far more to the imagination.

I'm no expert on film technique, but Peacock presented a nice combination of styles, including a comical surrealism of the caboose scenes, a counterpoint to more sober currents.

Not a 5-star, but most assuredly worth a watch!