Every now and then, I come across a film which I feel deserves more recognition. Sometimes, their lack of popularity slightly disappoints me. However, it really disappoints me to see such a compelling, masterfully crafted film like "Clean, Shaven" have so little recognition. Someday, I hope it receives more popularity, because it deserves it.
After a man named Peter Winter who suffers from schizophrenia is released from a mental institution, he attempts to get his daughter, Nicole, back from her adoptive family. He lives in a world that, to him, is filled with bizarre sounds and unexplainable occurrences which have negative effects on him. During his pursuit of his daughter, he becomes the prime suspect in an ongoing murder investigation.
After watching this film a few times, I'm now fully convinced that it's the best sound designed film of all time. No other usage of sound has ever felt as natural, painful, and absorbing as this film did. There are many great scenes which expertly simulate schizophrenia. Some of these sounds can be found right at the beginning. The film starts off with a shot of several waves followed by many bizarre sounds and seemingly random images. The opening credits seem to be informing you that this is not going to be an orthodox film of any kind. Another chilling scene is when Peter experiences hallucinations at a library as that scene feels unexpected. I feel like sound effects can be more effective than visuals. A director could always just show a character's distorted facial expressions and expect the audience to connect the dots as to what the character is feeling, but using ear-piercing sounds like the ones from this film can immerse you into what the character is feeling to a much greater extent. Largely because of this, the sound design from this film had an enormous impact on me.
Director Lodge Kerrigan used other tactics other than just sound to put you in the mind of Peter Winter such as having him isolate himself from the outside world in the way of covering the windows and mirrors of his car with newspapers. Peter also acted quite awkward around a few of the characters in the film. If he saw 2 sisters arguing with each other, the movie would have one of them talk in a demonic voice, almost like that's how Peter views other people. If he saw someone holding a gun, time would appear to slow down for him, showing he's clearly intimidated by the person holding the weapon. Clever moments like these make the movie feel atmospheric as it shows that Peter views the world as uncompromising. Kerrigan set out to create a realistic depiction of schizophrenia when he made this movie. Considering the sound design and the other miscellaneous techniques used in the film, I believe Kerrigan did just that.
The movie also works on a story level. I was intrigued by the question of whether Peter was responsible for the murder or not, because I honestly couldn't decide until the movie revealed the truth at the end. The hallucinations Peter underwent did a good job at keeping me guessing, specifically when the movie juxtaposed a murder over one of Peter's hallucinations while he stayed at the motel the murder occurred near. I felt like that scene was a red herring, but I still couldn't be completely sure. A recent observation I made was how none of the characters were on-screen nearly as much as Peter was. I've observed this quite a few times in other films. In this case, however, I think Kerrigan intended to make the film this way to make everything revolve around Peter, hence the mysterious tone of the film. Kerrigan also made a good decision by providing middle ground to the detective at the end by having him reflect on the actions he made throughout the film. By doing so, he avoided having him feel unlikable.
In conclusion, this movie blew me away for several reasons. Due of a mixture of compelling technical and story qualities, Kerrigan managed to craft one of my favorite films from the 90's. Its ending might turn off some people, but if you're able to get by it, you're in for a great experience. I really do wish this film would get more recognition, but regardless of whether it fades into obscurity or not in the future, it will always remain as the most atmospheric and bizarre film on mental illnesses ever made.
After a man named Peter Winter who suffers from schizophrenia is released from a mental institution, he attempts to get his daughter, Nicole, back from her adoptive family. He lives in a world that, to him, is filled with bizarre sounds and unexplainable occurrences which have negative effects on him. During his pursuit of his daughter, he becomes the prime suspect in an ongoing murder investigation.
After watching this film a few times, I'm now fully convinced that it's the best sound designed film of all time. No other usage of sound has ever felt as natural, painful, and absorbing as this film did. There are many great scenes which expertly simulate schizophrenia. Some of these sounds can be found right at the beginning. The film starts off with a shot of several waves followed by many bizarre sounds and seemingly random images. The opening credits seem to be informing you that this is not going to be an orthodox film of any kind. Another chilling scene is when Peter experiences hallucinations at a library as that scene feels unexpected. I feel like sound effects can be more effective than visuals. A director could always just show a character's distorted facial expressions and expect the audience to connect the dots as to what the character is feeling, but using ear-piercing sounds like the ones from this film can immerse you into what the character is feeling to a much greater extent. Largely because of this, the sound design from this film had an enormous impact on me.
Director Lodge Kerrigan used other tactics other than just sound to put you in the mind of Peter Winter such as having him isolate himself from the outside world in the way of covering the windows and mirrors of his car with newspapers. Peter also acted quite awkward around a few of the characters in the film. If he saw 2 sisters arguing with each other, the movie would have one of them talk in a demonic voice, almost like that's how Peter views other people. If he saw someone holding a gun, time would appear to slow down for him, showing he's clearly intimidated by the person holding the weapon. Clever moments like these make the movie feel atmospheric as it shows that Peter views the world as uncompromising. Kerrigan set out to create a realistic depiction of schizophrenia when he made this movie. Considering the sound design and the other miscellaneous techniques used in the film, I believe Kerrigan did just that.
The movie also works on a story level. I was intrigued by the question of whether Peter was responsible for the murder or not, because I honestly couldn't decide until the movie revealed the truth at the end. The hallucinations Peter underwent did a good job at keeping me guessing, specifically when the movie juxtaposed a murder over one of Peter's hallucinations while he stayed at the motel the murder occurred near. I felt like that scene was a red herring, but I still couldn't be completely sure. A recent observation I made was how none of the characters were on-screen nearly as much as Peter was. I've observed this quite a few times in other films. In this case, however, I think Kerrigan intended to make the film this way to make everything revolve around Peter, hence the mysterious tone of the film. Kerrigan also made a good decision by providing middle ground to the detective at the end by having him reflect on the actions he made throughout the film. By doing so, he avoided having him feel unlikable.
In conclusion, this movie blew me away for several reasons. Due of a mixture of compelling technical and story qualities, Kerrigan managed to craft one of my favorite films from the 90's. Its ending might turn off some people, but if you're able to get by it, you're in for a great experience. I really do wish this film would get more recognition, but regardless of whether it fades into obscurity or not in the future, it will always remain as the most atmospheric and bizarre film on mental illnesses ever made.