Disgrace

A strong meditation on man's sexual drive
After having read J.M. Coetzee's complex, disturbing, shocking and controversial novel, one could not directly see how this story could be transformed into an appealing screenplay and still less into a convincing movie.
It's heavily charged with all kind of sexual contacts, unforced and forced ones (by someone who is in a dominating position) and even with pure rape. It deals also with the eventual outcome of those contacts, like pregnancy and parental love.
Moreover, the story unfolds against the violent background of open racism in a country known for its apartheid.

Steve Jacobs did a formidable job in turning the harsh and sometimes bitter and terrible realities into a moving, emotional and ultimately sublime movie, which matches the book.
The director was impressively helped by his cast and in the first place by John Malkovich, whose (physical! and mental) interpretation of the very uninviting character of a sexually driven university professor is...

High Quality Drama
An Academy Award Quality film that generates an exquisite level of emotional impact rarely seen outide of such modern classics as, "American Beauty" and "House of Sand and Fog." Without a doubt, Malkovich is convincing in his nuanced and powerful role as a scoundrel and Lothario--but with none of the histrionics or over-the-top acting for which he is perhaps best known. This is a painfully insightful and politically charged movie that will be much appreciated by discerning viewers.

Moral Ambiguity
Let me begin by saying this film may be one of the best of the past year. The performance by John Malkovich gives us another reason to extend to him a title of superb actor. And, probably no one else could fill his shoes in the film.

The film is taken from the book by Nobel laureate J.M. Coetzee. He won the Booker Prize for this novel. I have not read it and find I must. Coetzee is one of those authors you remember, and as far as I am concerned has not won the acclaim he deserves. The film takes place a few years after Apartheid. There is no longer the legal stigma of socializing or dating among the races. Malkovich is a professor of Romantic Poetry at the U of South Africa. He is arrogant, pig headed even, and thinks of no other except himself and his needs. He has an affair with a young student, and while it is not rape, she obviously does not enjoy it. He is found out and is asked to leave the university. He shows no regret except that he was found out...

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