I like movies that are puzzles. Not just in Mysteries, but across all genres. Movies that explicitly spell out every twist and development can come off as patronizing. Part of the fun for me is trying to fill in the details and make the connections, right or wrong, myself. Having to figure it out can make for a more challenging and
engaging experience. The 2005 Sci-fi
acid trip AEON FLUX tests the limits of this argument.
The Capsule:
After 99% of the planet’s population dies of a virus in 2011
(dodged a bullet there, I only had a sinus infection that year), the survivors
are herded into a giant city called Bregna.
For the last 400 years, Bregna has been ruled by the Goodchild Dynasty,
founded by the guy who cured the virus (because scientists always get all glory). Things are pretty good in
Bregna, except Gestapo-like police sometimes kidnap/kill people for no apparent
reason. A rebel faction called the Monican are sick of this shit, so they send
their top assassin, Aeon Flux (Charlize Theron) to kill the current chairman,
Trevor Goodchild (Marton Csokas). Before
she can take him out, she is shocked to discover she shares a mysterious
connection to the man somewhere in her forgotten past. The jumble of memories and emotions leaves
her, and the audience, confused. To
unravel the truth, she will have to team up with the man she was sent to
kill. Standing in the way of the answers
are hundreds of machinegun toting goons, lethal plant based security systems, and
her one time partner, Sithandra (Sophie Okonedo), who has hands for feet. Believe me, I haven’t even scratched the
surface of how weird this movie really is.
I pride myself at being able to piece together—or just completely
fabricate—some semblance of logic to the most convoluted sci-fi head scratchers. This movie is so bugnuts insane, though, even
I can’t make heads or tails or hand/feet out of parts of it. This is partially because director Karyn Kusama ambitiously sought to make a truly fantastic and unique future world.
Mostly, though, it´s because the studio fired Kusama after
she finished the movie and chopped it up to the point of utter
incomprehension. Kusama was brought back
in to edit it once their version did not play well for test audiences, but she wasn’t allowed to
return the film to her vision. The
result was a complete mess that appealed to no one. Except me.
You know you are in trouble when the movie begins with a few
screens of exposition, followed immediately by voiceover of more
exposition. I was thinking “Well, at
least they didn’t throw in a flashback,” when I realized the first ten
minutes was a flashback. Even with all
that explanation, much of the plot is still mystifying. There is an intriguing, if ludicrous, sci-fi premise
at its core, but it gets lost in all the muddled motivations, sudden betrayals,
and allegiance switches.
One of the biggest unsolved questions is why the government
are such authoritarian assholes. It’s a
counterproductive stance to have. The
society of Bregna isn’t a grimy, worn out dystopia like in BLADE RUNNER. Everything is clean and shiny. The citizens seem to be free of class
divisions, poverty, and crime.
In fact, the number one occupation in Bregna is apparently just milling
about aimlessly. The Goodchild regime
and the police seem to be the only ones with an official function. Why do you need to have a strangle hold on
your population if everyone is so chill?
The only real strife in the city is completely manufactured by the government. People just disappear sometimes, or get
killed by the cops. There is a secret reason behind
it, but the ruling party doesn't even bother trying to cover things up. No one in the city
has a clue what exists outside of Bregna’s walls. It wouldn’t be hard to explain why people are missing. “Oh
Ted? Yeah, he moved to literally
anywhere else on Earth. He said he’d
send you a postcard.” Problem solved.
The price for the regime being so heavy handed comes in the
form of a secret resistance movement.
They are called the Monicans, presumably after Monica Geller from Friends, judging by Charlize Theron’s
haircut. They have a complex covert
operation involving spies, operatives, and assassins, all getting their orders
from the Handler (Frances McDormand, looking unsure of what she is doing there). But just like the government they fight
against, the Monicans are very vaguely defined.
Their only goal seems to be to kill Trevor Goodchild, and then later
Aeon because she goes rogue. The
government paints them as the major, and possibly only, threat against their
rule, but we never see why. It’s all
very elliptical. The government goes
after the Monicans because they fight back, and the Monicans fight back because
the government goes after them.
No matter how much of a mess the plot is, there are few
things that tickle my crazy sci-fi heart.
One is the gusto with which the filmmakers embrace the absurd future
technology. This is not like ALIEN or
even BLADE RUNNER, where the technology is basically identifiable. Okay, that’s a scanner, that’s a
flamethrower, that’s a flying car, got it.
AEON FLUX is like Alice in Futureland.
Things don’t have contemporary correlations. Government buildings are protected by gardens with hanging papayas that shoot poison darts and blades of grass are
actual blades. The Monicans communicate
by using something like a telepathy pill that links their minds together in a virtual meeting hall. Sort of a mental Skype
call.
Most stuff made sense in function, if not form. Aeon leaves around a bunch of explosive ball
bearings that come rushing to her like trained mice when she whistles. She can peel off bits of her skin and use
them like Band-Aids to close other people’s wounds. Data is stored in liquid. Some shit I have no clue about. She finds this, um, wearable robotic squid in Trevor’s study that either teleported her to a lab or changed
the study into a lab, or used a dimensional overlay to… I have no idea. It made the fight scene more dynamic, so I’ll
just go along with it.
Oh, and there’s a part where the Handler gives Aeon a map
transferred through pollen coming out of a flower she produces from her
mouth. Because what else is she going to
do, give her a piece of paper? This is
the future, damn it.
I’m kind of disappointed they didn’t go all out with
it. There are still basic things you can
recognize, like tables and stairs and umbrellas. Give me chairs growing out of the backs of large turtles, or
thermostats that you control by licking.
The movie does highlight the future of fashion, though. Aeon is introduced in stylish Business
Dominatrix chic, complete with a sheer head stocking.
She also has a negligee
made from strings of beads, which seems like it would be difficult to sleep
in.
The best outfit goes to Pete
Postlethwaite, who plays a ghost dressed like a cannoli with arms. He lives in a giant jellyfish blimp.
The design team put a lot of work into this movie. Or a lot of drugs.
Compared to all the crazy shit constantly parading across
the screen, the actual actors can seem a bit lost. Theron puts forth a solid effort. Aeon is no Furiosa by any stretch, but Theron
gives her a similarly steely determination and supreme confidence. Her combination of elegance and physicality
makes her a believable super assassin.
The fights are what you would expect for the mid 2000’s, lots of quick
cuts and close ups. The emphasis is more on acrobatics, much like in the original MTV cartoon the movie is based on. Aeon is constantly diving, swinging, or flipping over something. She never just
walks into a room when she can do a flying leap into
one.
Kusama creates a very female focused world without being
overt about it. Bregna has outgrown
sexism the way it outgrew many of the old social ills (except fascism). No one underestimates or patronizes Aeon
because she is a woman. While the majority of the government council
is male, including Trevor’s brother Oren (Jonny Lee Miller, who we immediately
identify as the real villain because he says nefarious things like “we can’t give them
the luxury of hope”), the movie is filled with women in positions of power. Most of the Monicans are women, as is Trevor’s
formidable head of security, Freya (Caroline Chikezie). The longest, most
elaborate fight sequences are Aeon against Freya and then Sithandra. The faceless male troopers can't last more than a few seconds against her. Don't even start with the aristocratic fops on the council. Women are the
more formidable force in this town.
I would love to see Kusama’s original cut. I have the feeling it would make much more
sense while retaining the crazy bits. I’d
even like to see the studio’s version to see how they stuffed all this into 70 minutes (the theatrical version felt rushed at 93). As it stands, the
current cut is a fascinating vision of unbound ambition hamstrung by studio interference. Unsurprisingly, the compromised product did not do well at the box office, and we did not get an AEON FLUX 2. That didn't stop Kusama, who continues to direct diverse and intriguing work, such as the exquisite THE INVITATION, and an incredibly creepy segment of the all female directed horror anthology, XX. As for AEON FLUX, it can be appreciated for
its wild concepts and gorgeous visuals. No matter what you think of the movie, it has a woman with hands for feet. Where else are you going to get that?
C Chaka
Posts
That goes for the Director’s Cut, at least, which is the only version I’ve
seen. Starting with the Director’s Cut
or extended cut is not always a smart move, since theatrical cuts tend to be
leaner and better paced. In this case,
though, I believe it was the right call.
From what I’ve heard, Kusama’s cut fleshes out Seyfried’s character a
little more. It starts with Needy in a
mental institution, seemingly with good justification (she’s a K-I-C-K-E-R,
just ask that poor nutritionist). After
she is thrown into solitary confinement, the movie flashes back to how she came
to such an antisocial state. Well, first
there is a flashback to her peering in Jennifer’s window like a stalker (the
beginning of the Theatrical cut), then we fully flashback to the beginning of her tale. A little strange structurally, but effective. The Kusama way.
Under all the blood and carnage, the heart of the story is
about how abusive girls can be to each other under the veil of friendship. Jennifer is clearly a horrible person even
before becoming demonified. She uses
Needy as her non-threatening wingman (wingwoman? winglady?), a smaller gem to
make the big one more impressive. Needy
lets Jennifer dictate how she dresses and where they go, insuring just the
right level of shadow for her to remain in. 
Despite her name, Needy isn’t a complete doormat, though. Kusama makes the relationship believable. They casually trade insults and seem to enjoy
each other’s company, as long as Jennifer is in the spotlight. Needy puts up with Jennifer’s bullshit
because she idolizes her friend, and vicariously enjoys the attention she isn’t
confident enough to attract on her own.
She’s also got a secret crush on her, which Jennifer subtly (and later,
not so subtly) uses as leverage. Needy’s
depth makes her easy to connect with, and gives her arc from pushover to ass
kicker a sense of honesty as she realizes that Jennifer’s self-esteem hinged on
her as much as, if not more than, the other way around. 
