“All the dark stuff that we couldn’t put into the Olympics has ended up here. We were finding a release for that instinct”, claims Boyle in a recent interview with Sight & Sound. Trance is certainly the antithesis of the Olympic Opening Ceremony: a psychologically complex and intimate drama, that doesn’t shy away from violence. It’s definitely not for family viewing.
It is, however, set in London, but not the
London you’re expecting. Free from landmarks, this metropolis
has a futuristic feel with its clean, minimalist lines and metallic and glass
surfaces. Much of the film is shot from
jaunty, expressionist angles through the glass surfaces, our view manipulated
like refracted light.
This all serves the elaborate
narrative. Art heist films are nothing
new – but this is far from your typical heist.
Simon (James McAvoy) works at an auction house and is hailed as a hero
when he prevents criminal leader Franck (Vincent Cassel) from stealing a piece
of art. Suffering from amnesia after a
blow to the head, Simon is soon caught up with the criminals as they take him
to see hypnotherapist Elizabeth (Rosario Dawson) in the hope he can remember
where the painting is hidden. Yet nobody
is quite as they seem, forcing us to question reality and who exactly is under
the titular trance. This isn’t really a
heist film at all, but a twisted psychological thriller.
Cleverly shot, Trance is typical of Boyle’s style.
The script is peppered with British humour and doesn’t shy away from
gore (though how much of it is real?). There’s
a real hypnotic rhythm to the editing that’s matched by the techno score from
Underworld’s Rick Smith (who most famously composed the score for Trainspotting). It might not be subtly used, but the music
gradually and mesmerically crescendos in parallel with the narrative. And the Olympic dream team returns with a
credit song from Emeli Sande (who else?!) that’s very much a departure from her
usual style.
Cassell isn’t quite dangerous enough as
Franck and Dawson returns in a typically sensual role, whilst McAvoy provides a
solid central performance though his turn at the end is a little sudden. This, however, is more of a narrative
problem. Like a painting, the narrative
slowly builds up its layers until it eventually reveals the full image. Along the way, there are some leaps that
require the audience to suspend their disbelief, with a sudden, slightly
disappointing denouement and Inception-style
open-end.
Still, however plausible the central
hypnotherapy concept, Trance is an
intelligent and thrilling exploration into the power of the human mind.
3/5