Side Effects (2013, Steven Soderbergh)

After her husband Martin Taylor (Channing Tatum)’s imprisonment, Emily (Rooney Mara) falls into depression and that continues after his release four years later. While Martin does his best to find a new job to start a new life, Emily gets more isolated and even tries to commit suicide. Despite what happened, she managed to convince her doctor that she made a mistake and that wouldn’t happen again.

After consulting with her former psychiatrist Victoria Siebert (Catherine Zeta Jones) and realizing she doesn’t get any better, Dr. Jon Banks (Jude Law) prescribes new medications, including the famous Ablixa. Emily seemed to be happy again at first but the side effets are important: sleepwalking, among others. A sleepwalking Emily kills Martin.

The investigation leads to Emily acting due to the medical treatment’s side effects but Dr. Banks decides to make his own researches to save his reputation and his job.

Emily (Rooney Mara) and Martin (Channing Tatum). Credits:  The Hollywood Reporter

At the beginning of the film, with the blood spreading all over the rooms of the house, one could make the connection to Soderbergh’s Contagion, like few days ago, someone gets the flu and now the world is suffering from an epidemic disease.

Then, from the moment the doctor prescribes a medication that acts on the serotonine ‘stopping the brain from telling you you’re sad’, one may think of a movie full of arguments denouncing the pharmaceutical industry but that would have been so simple.

Then, when things are getting clearer, one starts to remember details that passed unnoticed before and says ‘I should have known’. The movie starts slowly with important elements (legal system, health system, etc.) but distracting enough to keep us from the real deal, what’s really going on. It was probably unintentional but the scene where Em stabbed Martin (and the music) is a bit reminiscent of Hitchcock’s Psycho.

As for the performances, everyone did a great job but Rooney Mara (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) is to be praised for her portrayal of Emily.


SEE ALSO:

Contagion (Steven Soderbergh)
Hitchcock (Sacha Gervasi)
Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock)