The Underneath
A remake of the classic Robert Siodmak film noir Criss Cross, Steven Soderbergh's The Underneath follows much the same plot and narrative arc of the original, but expands the possibilities of its thriller structure to also explore the complexities and insecurities at the heart of modern relationships. Peter Gallagher stars as Michael, a compulsive gambler who returns to his Texas home for the wedding of his mother (Anjanette Comer). In his absence, his ex-wife Rachel (Alison Elliott) has married Tommy (William Fichtner), a ruthless local hood. Michael and Rachel soon resume their relationship, incurring Tommy's wrath. Out of their deceptions grows a plot to heist an armored car, a crime which requires the unwitting aid of Michael's stepfather (Paul Dooley) as well as a banker (Elisabeth Shue) with whom Michael shared a brief fling.
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Peter Gallagher, Alison Elliott, William Fichtner, Adam Trese, Joe Don Baker
Soderbergh is able to execute his games without pigeonholing his characters. He has made that rare thing, a modern-day noir with feeling.
Soderbergh's sleekly malignant Underneath is a nasty little winner.
Soderbergh pretty much failed in trying to evoke a noir-like nightmare world in the 1919 Prague of "Kafka," his 1991 terror film. But here, he dazzlingly hews out a noir landscape in more unlikely territory: modern-day Austin, Texas.
On its most successful level, the film represents a slashing dramatic essay on the dismaying human tendency not to accept full responsibility for one's actions.
By the end of the film the 1949 film noir sources are plainly in view, but earlier, Soderbergh seems more interested in personality quirks than double-crosses, and those are the more interesting scenes.
Best Cinematography
Independent Spirit Awards (1996)
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