"Asylum" takes place in postwar England when Dr. Max Raphael(Hugh Bonneville) is just starting a new job as a deputy superintendent at a mental hospital in rural England. He has been married to his beautiful wife, Stella(Natasha Richardson), for twelve years and they have a son, Charlie(Gus Lewis). While Max is
tending to his job, Stella is left with little to do during the day, having little social interaction with the other wives and less interest in their charities. But her interest is piqued by one of the patients, Edgar Stark(Marton Csokas), who is under the care of Dr. Peter Cleave(Ian McKellen).(Edgar has been repairing a greenhouse on the grounds, befriending Charlie in the process.) At the annual hospital dance, Stella and Edgar dance and later make passionate love in the greenhouse... "Asylum" is a dark and unpredictable psychological drama about the social restrictions in place on people in this time and place. The movie is aided by excellent performances, especially by Natasha Richardson and Ian McKellen, playing an underwritten role with gusto. However, it seemed like there was something missing from the movie which could have shed light on some of the characters' motivations(for example, Stella has been married for twelve years but is reckless in her behavior) which at times seemed murky.
August 29, 2006
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