Parameters

Author(s): Connor C. (Texas)
Parameters

Directed by Bennett Miller
Written by Tony Gilroy

CAST
Maggie Gyllenhaal- Lisa Keller
John Malkovich- Strange Man

TAGLINE: “Lock your back door, you idiot”

PLOT/SYNOPSIS:

“33 years go by and not once do you come home to find a man sitting in your bedroom. That is, a man you don’t know who’s come a long way to deliver one very specific message; lock your back door, you idiot. However invincible you imagine yourself to be, you are wrong.”

Lisa Keller could be described as normal. 33, single, a working girl who seems too preoccupied with work to take a man seriously. She doesn’t mind being alone, perhaps because she wouldn’t notice if she weren’t. She lives in the safest neighborhood of the safest suburb, surrounded by families and schools. But what she doesn’t know and what she can’t see is fear. It waits for her patiently, in the dark. It waits for her in the form of a strange man idling in his car not far from her home. He waits patiently for all her lights to turn off and enter her small home that is quiet, except the occasional clanking pipe, creaking branch, footfalls of a cat and possibly the swishing of this intruder’s coat.

But would Lisa ever give in to this fear? Would she recognize and acknowledge it, or would she dismiss it? Alone in this small house that is still far too big for her, it would be easy for her to see this fear lurking in her home. It starts with seemingly normal sounds then followed by an unfamiliar car parked across the street. Then she starts noticing things out of place, maybe he moved them. She locks her doors, but maybe it’s too late now. Perhaps he’s had a key made. She might go to take a shower to find that it’s already wet. Did he take a shower? And it evolves from there. Suddenly she comes home to find her bed is no longer made and her bathtub full of water. Is this actually happening, or could this be something in her head? It doesn’t matter if it’s real or not, that only tortures her more.

When once she could stroll through her house without turning on lamps she now must have every lamp lit so she can see her way. He, or it, or whatever it is has started to rearrange her furniture. She has nobody to tell, nobody to show. She’s all alone. She collapses onto her bed to find a strange man sitting in her bedroom. He almost smiles when she finally sees him. He sits in her most uncomfortable chair, the one that nobody ever uses in the far right corner. Terrified she sits motionless on her bed. He leans in and says in a near whisper, “Lock your back door you idiot.” He stands up and walks away, never to harm this Lisa Keller ever again. She sits still on her bed until finally she rises to find her furniture back in order, her shower dry, the car gone and the house quiet. It must have been in her head, there was no strange man. But maybe there was. Maybe he was real and merely taught her not to get too comfortable in her routine. Because one day you might come home to find a man sitting in your bedroom. What will you do then?

AWARDS CAMPAIGN:

As we grow older, our fears get pushed to the wayside and start to get buried under the more important things in life. But occasionally, something will introduce itself to us and we are so unprepared for it that it floors us. “Parameters” explores this idea introducing us to a normal woman (Gyllenhaal) with a nameless job living alone in suburban America. Slowly, the arising minute differences in her life start to scare her and she creates this strange man (Malkovich) who terrorizes her in secret. What the audience is left to figure out is whether or not this man is real. Borrowing ideas from Ani Difranco’s song of the same name, Tony Gilroy, who has written such hits as Michael Clayton and the Bourne series creates this thriller which is among the most thrilling and haunting of it’s time. His screenplay relies heavily on visuals and seemingly normal sounds and lays off the dialogue. Bennett Miller, who broke on the scene in 2005 with Capote has assured himself a spot in film history. The camera often times follows Gyllenhaal into her nightmare as opposed to us leading her into it. Miller brilliantly portrays the fear that is felt by the character and creates suspense with almost no musical score. As opposed to being threatened with knives and bullets the audience is frightened by change, which is the theme of the film. Maggie Gyllenhaal portrays Lisa Keller with a certain naivety that elevates the fear felt by her character. In many ways a woman possessed, Gyllenhaal shows us the proper way to play a victim in a thriller. John Malkovich creates a villain we haven’t seen since Nurse Ratchet, playing the villain with a certain smugness and silence. This character is a mystery which makes it so much harder to play. Malkovich captures this character through his movements and actions and the few times he does speak he delivers his lines very matter-of-factly which seems fitting for his character. His character is determined to teach the victim a lesson. Malkovich is officially back with the best performance of the year. Parameters is one of the few films that just might change you. A Masterpiece and a must see. ****/****

FYC
Best Picture
Best Director- Bennett Miller
Best Actress- Maggie Gyllenhaal
Best Actor- John Malkovich
Best Adapted Screenplay- Tony Gilroy