Indignation * * * 1/2

I don't kiss on the first date. However....

   Philip Roth is one of my favourite writers. And that’s not just because he has a really nice Christian name.

   I’m not sure how this film came about, but it strikes me as a labour of love.  One of those films that somebody always wanted to make because they liked the novel so much.

   From what I've heard it’s not easy to get Roth to agree to the filming of his books, so I guess it’s existence is an achievement in itself.

   It’s not thrilling but it’s well told and beautifully shot. From costumes to sets to streetscapes it is a convincing 1951.

  It’s a Philip Roth story so you just  know it's’ going to be about a Jewish boy obsessed with a Gentile girl right?  

  Well it is, because that’s what Roth does.  

  The other thing that Roth does is humour, but God he’s dry, and unfortunately the film hasn’t translated that feature of Roth so well  - unless I was misinterpreting the ever present melancholia in this film.

  Basically a young man with smothering parents goes to College to defer being drafted into the Korean War.  There he meets a beautiful young woman Olivia who gives him a special treat on their first date, which leaves him as much shocked as delighted.     

  Unfortunately she has mental health problems. But does that mean her passionate expressions of physical affection are dubious?

  Marcus also has a nemesis in the College Dean, a manipulating nasty piece of work whose anti semitic feelings constantly percolate beneath his “reasonable” arguments.  And argue with Marcus he does, especially when Marcus declares himself an atheist.   The scenes between them are beautifully acted and directed.

  It does plod a little, and to be honest, it’s not a happy story, so I don’t think it’s going to be any kind of blockbuster, but it is a very well crafted film.