Cast: Dan Futterman, Alan Cumming, Matt Keeslar, Josh Hamilton, Lothaire Bluteau, William Sage, Barbara Sukowa
Director: Jon Shear
Producers: Stephanie Golden, J. Todd Harris
Screenplay: Daniel Reitz and Jon Shear, based on the play "Urban Folk Tales" by Daniel Reitz
Cinematography: Shane F. Kelly
Music: Marc Anthony Thompson
U.S. Distributor: Unapix Films
A competition entry at this year's Sundance Film Festival, Jon Shear's grim, dark Urbania is the latest motion picture to toy with audience expectations. It treads the thin and often ambiguous line between the real and imagined in a way that will keep all but the most easily distracted film-goers involved. Urbania may occasionally be a little clumsy in its attempts to mislead viewers, but that's not its primary aim. This is a tale of love, loss, and the unending (and often futile) search for intimacy in a cold world. It is not a happy story by any stretch of the imagination, but, in an age when communication by electronic means has replaced face-to-face contact, Urbania's focus is timely and meaningful.
The main storyline centers on Charlie (Dan Futterman), a gay man who has recently suffered through the traumatic end to a meaningful relationship. In the aftermath, Charlie is trying to find something to hang on to, so he spends much of his time in a sleazy dive, looking for the one particular individual with which he believes he has "a connection." Along the way, he experiences bizarre visions, some of which are flashbacks, some of which may be real, and some of which are the product of a grief-stricken and angry imagination. As the film unfolds, we gradually learn more about Charlie's history, but it isn't until the closing moments that everything snaps into focus.
While this material, which is competently handled by Shear, is interesting in its own right, the subplots are what elevate Urbania to a level that demands notice. The director cleverly entwines Charlie's plight with a series of urban legends - kidneys stolen from the body of a human host, a baby left on the hood of a car, a dog placed in a microwave oven, and a woman who has unprotected sex with a man to give him AIDS. Each of these becomes a thread in the background fabric of Shear's tapestry, and several are presented in such an offhand manner that it's as if the filmmaker is winking at his audience.
Dan Futterman, who is known primarily as a "light" actor (he's currently a regular in the TV series "Judging Amy"), gives a precise, credible performance as a man on the brink of an abyss. We're never quite sure whether or not Charlie is sane. He's our narrator, but he may not be reliable. Shear further muddies the water by presenting events in a non-chronological fashion. Although the plot moves from point A to point B, it by no means makes that trip in a straight line. Along the way, gallows humor and a growing sense of doom serve to heighten the level of tension and suspense.
© 2000 James Berardinelli