Damage [VHS] [1993]

The key catalyst in this modern Greek tragedy is Anna Barton (Juliette Binoche), a young, androgynous woman and the daughter of a diplomat, whose taciturn and cryptic presence has both a bewitching and disturbing effect from the start. When she meets her boyfriend's father, Dr. Stephen Fleming (Jeremy Irons) who is a Member of Parliament, and begins an affair with him, the Oedipal roles are reversed as the father becomes the competitor for the son's love object. At a family gathering, Anna is open about her traumatic past, telling them of her brother who committed suicide at 16, unable to cope with his sister embarking on her first love affair. Left with a legacy of existential anguish, she would seem to be compulsively reenacting the conflict through new erotic entanglements in an attempt to resolve it, and remains wholly unconcerned about the destruction she might wreak in the process. As she rather melodramatically tells Stephen after another bout of aggressive sex, "Remember: damaged people are dangerous. They know they can survive".

Other reviewers have commented that the motivation of Jeremy Irons' character is not clear or realistic. But I felt that it was plausible and could understand how he might be easily seduced by Anna - she does after all embody the fierce passion and powerful emotions that are all too lacking in his boring, bourgeois marriage to Ingrid (Miranda Richardson) and the routine-based family existence he has built up with her. His betrayal of her and his own son Martyn (Rupert Graves) is not a morally reprehensible act, but I believe it was director Louis Malle's intention to show what is spontaneously - and sometimes fatally - abandoned when buried desires are finally acted upon after years of repression. How we react to the character of Stephen perhaps tells us how we react to desire, and the extent to which we might allow morals to harness and hold back a basic, existential passion.

The film polarised critics, too, upon its release in 1992. Some could not take it seriously (always a problem with melodrama) and mocked the combative sex scenes in which Binoche and Irons paw and claw at each other. Others found the adultery storyline and the character of Anna off-putting (as if trauma were somehow 'unpleasant' rather than a tragic fact of life). There are, it must be said, a few incongruities in the film: Anna's mother Elizabeth (Leslie Caron), for example, has an American accent although her daughter retains a French one; at dinner, she tactlessly talks of Martyn resembling her dead son, thereby unsettling everyone in the room without noticing herself, but somehow astutely observes Stephen's furtive lust for her daughter and warns him to steer clear at the same time. Also, the musical score is sometimes too much of a distraction, too intrusively melodramatic.

But this film is nevertheless well worth watching. Miranda Richardson's performance is so emotionally sincere, it is almost painful to watch in the closing scenes (especially when she tells her husband in utter devastation, "What a pity we ever met"). In contrast to what others have written of the two leads, I found that they rose to the task well. Binoche - one of my favourite actresses - is compelling, in spite of the discrepancy of accent. Asked by the New York Times in 1992 whether she identified with the character of Anna, she replied: "No, but I understood her. I understood that when you have lost the main thing in your life, you have nothing else to lose and you're kind of free and dangerous to others. It's your road; you're walking along your own road."

Also recommended: The End of the Affair (DVD), Three Colours Blue (DVD) and The Unbearable Lightness Of Being (DVD)

As a huge Jeremy Irons fan I was thrilled to discover he starred in a film based on one of my favourate books, "Damage" by Josephine Hart. I odered the DVD that day and wasn't dissapointed. The story tells of a well off middle aged Dr turned politician with a beautiful wife and two children who believes himself to be perfectly happy until he meets the aloof and beautiful fiance of his son and discovers that he has never really lived. Those who like the french or european style of film making in general will love this film, the sex scenes are powerful and realistic and the characters are wonderfully cast. The film can be bare in places, the story line disturbing, but all in all it's definately worth watching. Those expecting a "Basic Instinct" style glossed up and expensively made sex thriller will be dissapointed, those who enjoy good acting, a good story line and an element of realism will not.

After meeting his son's (Martyn, played by Rupert Graves) fiancee, Anna (Juliette Binoche), Dr Stephen Fleming (Jeremy Irons), a member of parliament, becomes wild for her and soon they start an obsessive sexual affair. They would seize every single opportunity they could to see each other and f***. They just f***. Their physical desire for each other is insatiable. They always want more. Dr Fleming completely forgets about his son and his wife. Anna obviously has issues about remaining faithful to her future husband. Dr Fleming and Anna keep seeing one another secretly. Their sexual expression is like exploding volcanoes. Until one day, Martyn has got Anna's new address and finds that the door to the room is unlocked...

This film is not just about an ordinary extra-marital affair. It is about sheer self-indulgence and ultimate obsession. Compared to 'Unfaithful', the elements in this movie is far more intense and in a way, this is almost about incest. I wouldn't say all cases of adultery are unforgivable, for people fall in love/becoming attracted to someone for a reason. But this film is about pure lust (although 'Unfaithful' is also about desire), not love. In the end, Dr Fleming and Anna must confront the dire consequences...

I personally think this film is quite dazzling. The performances are superb, in particular the breakdown scene in which Miranda Richardson performs. Certainly, 'Fatale'/'Damage' is for adults only. These two are simply crazy about each other, in the case of sex. In this sense, passion is abused and misused. Nevertheless, this is a great work. If you're after cinema sexual intensity, this flick is for you.