Some Velvet Morning

Studio: Tribeca Film
Written and Directed by Neil LaBute

Dec 16, 2013 By Zach Hollwedel Web Exclusive

After twenty-four years of marriage, Fred (Stanley Tucci) leaves his wife and shows up on the doorstep of the much younger Velvet (Alice Eve). Caught off-guard—though genuinely happy to see her former lover—Velvet invites Fred in. He drops his suitcases on her floor and makes it clear he has come with the intention of moving in with her, despite the fact they haven’t seen one another in over four years. Fred has been carrying the torch for her since their affair ended, and the more Velvet indicates her feelings toward him have cooled, the more dark and abusive Fred’s unwarranted possessiveness of her becomes.

The potential for a deeply disturbing, unnerving psychological thriller is high with LaBute’s two-character, single-location film shot in real-time. However, it’s in the execution that the potential is lost. From his opening line, it’s obvious Fred has come with ulterior motives, though his neuroses quickly become tiring as he reveals his agenda. Velvet, rapidly a prisoner in her own house, alternates between trying to appease her unhinged past paramour and finding herself amused by his antics. Tucci’s performance never feels natural, and thus the overly crass, abrasive sexual references Fred wantonly flings at Velvet come across as crude for crudeness’s sake. Eve’s role has some meat to it, but her opportunity to shine is overshadowed by LaBute’s flagrant dialogue and Fred’s grating misogyny.

For nearly 80 minutes, one wonders why Velvet subjects herself to Fred’s abuses. The film climaxes with perhaps the most genuine moment of the entire movie, only to be completely undone by a horrendous final scene acceptable, maybe, in an intro to filmmaking short project, but not in a feature production with actors such as these. Some Velvet Morning is at best a missed opportunity and mercifully, a short one.

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