Rent Passages (2023)

A boring & eventually trite film about a monstrous narcissist who the director seems enamoured with - Passages review by TB

Narcissists are people who can be great subjects for films & drama, especially if they are brilliant at what they do. A recent great example is Reynolds Woodcock from Phantom Thread, a preening & precocious man-child who whilst at times is exasperating, was none-the-less a great subject for a film about an industry full of perfectionists (fashion.) But, when you are dealing with these types of people, if the character is not carefully written, it just becomes an exercise in suffering through the runtime whilst someone you grow to hate grinds every one of your gears. And this is how I felt after spending 20 minutes in Passage's company.

Thomas is a film director who is finishing up his latest project. He is an arrogant, petulant, insecure & obsessive narcissist, who in the opening shots on the film set is allowed & even encouraged to let his ego run rampant. He is married to Martin, a gentle & caring fellow artist, who clearly has had to put up with untold amounts in their relationship. At the wrap party, after Martin doesn't want to dance with him, Thomas then becomes intimate with Agathe, a beautiful & free-spirited teacher, whom he sleeps with that evening. From there, we follow Thomas as he proceeds to use & manipulate Martin & Agathe, depending on whatever whim or mood he is in.

When watching this, the main feeling I came away with was disgust. The film effectively creates a world where this rampant egotist is tolerated & almost admired, especially in the way it sets up various situations. So for example, early on in the film, Thomas tells Martin gleefully that he has cheated on him with a woman, of course meaning that Martin is not only heartbroken but also mortified. This then results in Thomas feeling "unappreciated," packing his things, storming out & moving in with Agathe. A short time later, he manages to worm his way back into the country house he shares with Martin, before complaining to him that he is upset that Martin isn't happy for him that he cheated on him... And of course, being a disgusting narcissist, when Martin becomes involved with another man, this is intolerable to Thomas, the camera lingering on his face as he sulks & pouts.

As much as some people (as well as a lot of critics,) would argue that the film is shot in a non-judgemental way, effectively allowing us to just see the characters interact, I don't accept this. The script seems enamoured with Thomas, as well as giving him 2 characters who are not only decent people, but also unbelievably tolerant ones who he continually manipulates. All this behaviour sadly starts to make Thomas resemble Brüno, the Sacha Baron-Cohen created gay Austrian fashion reporter, someone who you begin to despise simply because you wonder why you are wasting your time watching him, as well as being mystified as to why the creators are so beguiled by him (at least in Brüno there are some unbelievably funny skits to offset this.)

If your idea of a good film is watching a precocious brat, you will find much to enjoy. However, if you actually want to watch a story with a difficult protagonist who you enjoy spending time with, rent Phantom Thread or Gone Girl