This film is a compelling drama that relies on its
surprising acting. In the film, du Pont
heir, John, wants to sponsor and coach a wrestling team at his estate with the
aim of entering and winning the Olympics. Toward that end, he first convinces
Olympic gold medalist Mark Schultz to train at his estate, Foxcatcher, and he
then recruits Mark’s brother, Dave Schultz, to train and coach there.
But Foxcatcher’s script and acting give unexpected nuance to this simple story. One of the
strongest roles here is Channing Tatum as Mark Schultz. Under Bennett Miller’s direction, Tatum’s
Mark is a dull, inarticulate, physically-imposing man who is a follower despite
his athleticism. As a competitor, he’s strong
and quick, but he’s unable to connect with others or make
friends. He’s defined by an inferiority
complex towards his older brother Dave throughout the film. Tatum creates this character with small
touches like a hulking stride and a slightly bent posture. And in this film
of close-ups, when Miller’s camera lingers on Dave’s face, Tatum’s Dave has a
blank, confused look as he tries to figure out how to respond in each situation. This Dave is a man of arresting physical
bearing but a weak, passive personality that calls to be led.
Foxcatcher follows Dave as he oscillates between two men who
lead him. His sharp, gregarious,
family-oriented older brother Mark is one of these men. A father himself and a coach, Mark also tries
to take care of his younger brother, and though Dave can’t articulate how he
feels, a strength of Tatum’s performance is that we can see that Dave is
envious of his older brother’s success but that he can’t manage to accomplish the same
on his own. The early sparring scene
between the two, a mixture of aggression and affection, defines their
relationship better than any amount of exposition would.
Trying to strike out on his own, Dave falls under the
leadership of a second man, Steve Carell’s John du Pont. This odd millionaire is an uncertain, awkward
man who is middle-aged and dumpy, but he’s deeply motivated by a desire for
power and domination. Never able to
please his mother, du Pont uses the wealth available to him to buy power. He loves guns and weaponry and subsidies
local law enforcement so they practice at his estate. He buys heavy military armaments as a
hobby. His wealth secures a deference
that insulates him, but the aggression in wrestling also attracts him, so he starts
a team on the estate and postures as their trainer. Carell creates many of the most uncomfortable
moments in Foxcatcher, as when his ungainly du Pont wins a match that is thrown
or when he wrestles around on top of the handsome athletes his wealth has
bought. In one particularly
uncomfortable scene, Dave clearly feels he has to let du Pont clamor on top of
him in the middle of the night, a scene whose power comes as much from Tatum’s
and Carell’s acting as from the situation.
And as with Dave, close-ups on du Pont create discomfort. After Dave tells du Pont that money won’t
convince Mark to come to Foxcatcher, the camera lingers on du Pont’s face as
Carell’s eyes go blank and he keeps silent and immobile for several
seconds, his nose in the air. John du Pont expects his money
to win the day for him, and he doesn’t know how to react to this information.
The characters and acting alone would make Foxcatcher a
worthwhile film, but Miller brings important cinematic elements to bear,
too. Throughout, the script interweaves
strands of patriotism, class, power, weakness and love, and Miller so deftly
handles his images that every detail onscreen seems to speak to these themes,
whether it’s painting of George Washington or horse trophies. Miller also brings an independent filmmaker specificity
the settings. In the early part of the
film, the school that Dave visits and his apartment have a great uniqueness to
them as do, later, Mark’s home and du Pont’s.
And the cinematography makes this film compelling. The close-ups put us uncomfortably into
dialogs and actions, and the shallow focus compels us to look at a limited
range of what’s happening onscreen.
Miller’s direction compliments the story, acting and settings here to
make Foxcatcher even more intense.
Foxcatcher is a significant exploration of today’s
America. Though the story follows the
relationship among three individuals, the concerns that run through their
interactions run also animate our time, when our American competitive spirit is
running up against increasing inequality and limited social mobility.
