ATOMISED is a German adaptation of French author, Michel Houellebecq's, acclaimed novel. It focuses on two half-brothers - Bruno and Michel. Both were abandoned by their mother - a selfish hippie - and were raised by their repective grandmothers. Bruno had a horrific childhood, abandoned and sexually abused, he comforted himself with food. In this modern era, where beauty and youth are rewarded by sexual fulfillment, poor fat Bruno was condemned to a life of voyuerism and onanism. He is stuck in a dead-end teaching job, married to a physically unattractive woman, rejected even by students he lusts after and allowed only to vent his spleen in racist rants too politically incorret to publish. In the novel, Bruno finds a brief moment of happiness with a sexually adventurous woman called Christiane who, like Bruno, frankly appreciates that in modern society a woman of her age cannot hope for love - only one-night stands.
Bruno's half brother Michel had, by contrast, a happy childhood with his loving grandmother. A maths prodigy, Michel never brought himself to kiss the exceptionally beautiful young girl who was in love with him, Annabelle. In adulthood, Michel becomes a fantastically successful scientist, but one day he simply leaves his job and enters a funk - living on cheap meals from Monoprix and not quitting the apartment for days on end. Eventually, he too will make a connection of sorts with Annabelle, and conclude his scientific work in Ireland.
But this is just a sort of plot outline through character. The real meat of the novel is the subjects it tackles: the selfishness of the hippie culture; the tragedy of the modern free-market in sex where the old and ugly are perpetual losers; the alienation of man in modern society; the logical conclusion of the separation of sex and procreation; the difficulty of finding a connection with another person....
Like I said, I found the novel too nihilistic, self-satisfied and pretentious for my taste. But there is no doubting its scope, ambition and imaginative use of structure. The film, by contrast, is a petty and limiting affair. Where there was once an attempt at an incisive philosophical discourse, we now have a hackneyed love story. Where there were acres of badly-written sex scenes, we now have the odd shot of a chick in PVC boots. (ooh! How daring!) And don't get me started on the syrupy ending. It seems that on every level, German writer-director Oskar Röhler has neutered Michel Houellebecq's novel. ATOMISED may have been an bitter, angry, adolescent novel, but at least it had character and held your interest. Better an attention-seeking howl than this flaccid mess.
ATOMISED/ELEMENTARTEILCHEN opened in Germany in February 2006, Italy in April and is currently playing in the UK. It opens in France on August 30th and the Netherlands on October 5th.
Bruno's half brother Michel had, by contrast, a happy childhood with his loving grandmother. A maths prodigy, Michel never brought himself to kiss the exceptionally beautiful young girl who was in love with him, Annabelle. In adulthood, Michel becomes a fantastically successful scientist, but one day he simply leaves his job and enters a funk - living on cheap meals from Monoprix and not quitting the apartment for days on end. Eventually, he too will make a connection of sorts with Annabelle, and conclude his scientific work in Ireland.
But this is just a sort of plot outline through character. The real meat of the novel is the subjects it tackles: the selfishness of the hippie culture; the tragedy of the modern free-market in sex where the old and ugly are perpetual losers; the alienation of man in modern society; the logical conclusion of the separation of sex and procreation; the difficulty of finding a connection with another person....
Like I said, I found the novel too nihilistic, self-satisfied and pretentious for my taste. But there is no doubting its scope, ambition and imaginative use of structure. The film, by contrast, is a petty and limiting affair. Where there was once an attempt at an incisive philosophical discourse, we now have a hackneyed love story. Where there were acres of badly-written sex scenes, we now have the odd shot of a chick in PVC boots. (ooh! How daring!) And don't get me started on the syrupy ending. It seems that on every level, German writer-director Oskar Röhler has neutered Michel Houellebecq's novel. ATOMISED may have been an bitter, angry, adolescent novel, but at least it had character and held your interest. Better an attention-seeking howl than this flaccid mess.
ATOMISED/ELEMENTARTEILCHEN opened in Germany in February 2006, Italy in April and is currently playing in the UK. It opens in France on August 30th and the Netherlands on October 5th.
