The Human Stain, the Film by Robert Benton - Movie Review Example

The Human Stain, the Film by Robert Benton The human stain, the film by Robert Benton belongs to the romantic thriller genre. The film (2003) is based on a novel by a renowned writer namely, Philip Roth. The director tries to go beyond the novel to unearth the scope of human life and the problem of existential dilemma ( say, identity crisis) faced by the main characters like Nathan Zuckerman, Coleman Silk, Faunia Farley and Lester. One can easily identify that the director makes use of the main characters as his mouthpiece to communicate with the viewers in general. Thesis statement: The film The human stain is symbolic of human life, racism, identity crisis, complexity of characters and individual freedom of the director. Plot summary The film introduces Nathan Zuckerman, who leads a lonely life in New England due to his divorce and illness. Then Coleman Silk (protagonist), who is a professor expelled from his profession, is introduced by the director. He was expelled from his profession due to racist remarks. This incident affected his family life and he lost his wife. So he decided to write a book with the help of Nathan Zuckerman. When Coleman met Faunia Farley (divorced woman), his decision to write a book on the problems faced by him becomes unimportant. The individuals who are behind Coleman’s problem began to interfere into their relationship. When Lester (say, Faunia's ex-husband) enters, the plot thickens because he unveils Faunia's past. Lester reveals Faunia’s role in the accident which killed their children. Later, the viewers come to know that Coleman’s ancestry is rooted African American community and he was pretending as a Jew. Discussion: The discussion is divided into five sections, namely: human life, racism, identity crisis (Hopkins’s identity), complexity of characters and individual freedom of the director. A. Human life: In the film, the director tries his level best to unveil the secrets of human life and its complexity. For instance, the main characters in the film (Nathan, Coleman, Faunia and Lester) possess dual lives. Their real lives are hidden in their past and they are not ready to unveil the same in front of the viewers. For instance, Nathan does not like to reveal the secrets of his life and decides to keep aloof from the mainstream society. On the other side, Coleman decides to escape from the mainstream society and to hide his identity as an African American. Faunia does not like to reveal her past and her life with her husband. Within this context, Lester uncovers Faunia’s identity and the reason behind the psychological problems faced by him in his personal domain. So, one can easily identify that the main theme of the film is human life and the secret behind the same. B. Racism: Racism is not the main theme of the film but it is inherent within the same. For instance, Coleman makes use of his fake identity to escape from racism. He very well knew that his real identity as an African American may create problems in his profession. So, he decided to pretend himself as a Jew. But this did not help him much because he became a victim of his own comments on racism. Foster opines that “Similarly, the passing story of The Human Stain (Robert Benton, 2003) would hold no interest without the inevitable “reveal”” (114). From a different angle of view, Coleman’s pretension as a Jew is to veil his real identity as an African American. At the same time, his mask (as a white Jew) did not help him to claim himself as the member of mainstream society. So, Coleman’s attempt can be considered as a futile attempt to escape from racism. C. Identity crisis (Hopkins’s identity) The main characters, including the protagonist, face the problem of identity crisis and related problems in their personal lives. For instance, Nathan’s idle life is an attempt to escape from identity crisis. On the other side, Coleman’s relationship with Faunia is an attempt to escape from mechanical life. Within this context, Coleman’s (say, Hopkins’s) identity is most interesting to the viewers because he does not like to reveal his real identity as an African American. But Maier opines that “One might think that Briton Anthony Hopkins is not exactly a wise choice for playing a Negro that passes” (7). Coleman tries his level best to hide his identity and pretends to be a Jew. But this does not help him to hide his real identity because the same is revealed in the end of the film. Faunia tries to forget her past and decides to lead a happy life with Coleman. On the other side, the psychological problems faced by Lester touches the hearts of the viewers because he does not like to escape from the real world. So, the main characters in the film face the problem of identity crisis and their attempts can be considered as unending search for truth or the secret of life. D. Complexity of characters The main characters in the film, including the protagonist, are portrayed by the director as complex characters. The opening of the film does not provide enough evidence to the complexity inherent in the characters. Gradually, the complexity is revealed through the technique of flash back. For instance, Nathan’s life seems to be calm and quiet because he is leading a lonely life. At the same time, revelation of his past leads to a number of incidents in his life (illness, death of his wife etc) which forced him to lead an idle life. On the other side, Coleman is trying his level best to escape from the problems in his public life. He is not ready to subdue to the problems and is ever ready to fight against injustice (say, racism). On the other side, complexity in Faunia’s character is revealed by Lester, her ex-husband. At the same time, Lester is the most complex character because he is suffering from psychological problems originated from war and family issues. E. Individual freedom of the director In the film, the director makes use of the main characters as his mouthpiece to communicate with the viewers. For instance, the director makes use of his individual freedom to unearth the reasons behind Nathan’s decision to lead an idle life. In addition, in the end, the director decides to reveal Coleman’s real identity as an African American. Within this context, the director makes use of Lester to reveal Faunia’s identity and her role in the problems faced by Lester. So, one can see that the director shows keen interest to make use of his individual freedom to reveal the identity of the characters. From a different angle of view, the narrative technique (gradual revelation of identity) made use by the director is the best example for the director’s individual freedom in the film. Summing, the film The human stain, is symbolic of human life with a number of interconnected events. The main characters are destined to lead different lives but the element of tragedy or hardships in life connects their lives. Besides, racism is an important sub-plot in the film because it forces the protagonist to undergo a number of hardships in his personal and public domains. The identity crisis faced by the main characters forces them to fight against the odds in their lives. Some of the characters become successful but some others become victims to fate. In addition, the individual freedom made use by the director and his decision to instill complexity to the main characters is the best examples for his craftsmanship as a director. Personal opinion: I like this film because the director presents his characters’ hidden identities and helps the viewers to unveil s their real identities. The narrative technique director, revealing the real identity of the characters in a gradual manner is the most interesting element of the film. Besides, the film can be considered as one of the best examples for psychological study of human mind and character. In short, the director’s craft is evident in the revelation of the protagonist’s real identity in the end. Works Cited Foster, Gwendolyn Audrey. Class-passing: social mobility in film and popular culture. USA: SIU Press, 2005. Print. Maier, Kevin. Paper Vs. Celluloid - Dealing with Passing and Race in "The Human Stain". Norderstedt: GRIN Verlag, 2008. Print. Read More