Mother Night

Many movies made from books are heartfelt, sappy, and conclude with happy endings. Mother Night, written by Kurt Vonnegut, was made into a movie directed by Keith Gordon, who broke away from these standards and provided a more faithful artistic point of view of the book. Keith Gordon used color to represent the attitude and emotion of each scene. Also, he added certain visual aspects such as a spotlight, accentuated the characters features in a close-up, or made elaborate scenes like those in a fairy-tale. These aspects jolt the viewer back to reality and give the mindset that this is more of a play than a movie. Gordon did not try to exalt the movie like many today are that we experience in theaters. This director broke off from traditional filmmaking and directed the movie according to how he wants people to understand his perspective- that this is a work of fiction. In the following synopsis it is easy to see the creative plot with which he had to work.
The main character, Howard W. Campbell Jr., was an American spy eventually jailed for his association with the Nazis, who brought about the death of millions. During the war, ignorant of his true identity, the Nazis loved him and the Jews and Americans despised him. His wife, Helga, who was killed by the Russians, provided his main source of solace and rest. After her death, he was captured by an American soldier, beaten, and left on the side of the road. Campbell was not completely alone in his experience; he had a "blue fairy god-mother" who recruited him and, when the time came, relieved him of his undercover duties and allowed him to start from scratch in America. During this new life, his past caused him more tribulations. His only friends- Resi, his new love and Helga's younger sister, and his neighbor - turn out to be spies conspiring to take him to Russia. Because they were both taken from him, he was left with nothing but the option of turning himself in to the authorities. Having no reason to be liberated from this hell, he took his own life while in jail.
The first scene of the film introduced the audience to the main character as he was jailed to the tune of "A White Christmas." In each scene, Keith Gordon used colors and backgrounds that cause the viewer to feel the emotion that the scene is trying to convey. For instance, black and white floods the White Christmas scene with the reality of a melancholy existence that no one would want to live. When Campbell recalled the happier times from his past, colored pictures provide imagery and help identify the times he reminisced. Like when Howard met his "blue fairy god-mother" for the first time in a park on a sunny day with leaves falling from the trees overhead, a feeling of childhood comfort radiated from the screen. These particular situations are painted vividly to show how he affectionately remembered past experiences and those he loved. Each time the main character was in the black and white jail cell, a spotlight shone on him or another part of the scene that the director wanted to accentuate. Also, when Resi killed herself, a melodramatic spotlight was placed over Howard as he embraced her; because of this exaggeration it is easy for the audience to see the fiction in the story. When the actors are viewed in a spotlight with everything around them fading to black, it showed their importance in the scene. In such situations as these, the actors were challenged to create their characters so as not to convey the stereotypical “reality” of a movie.
The actors cast for this film were appropriately chosen for the roles they played. Nick Nolte, who played Howard W Campbell Jr., gave a superb performance. He perfected the emotions his character had to portray throughout his experiences from middle-aged glory through his later years of misery. Sheryl Lee's acting talents were challenged in playing the dual roles of Helga as well as Resi. Although Helga did not have a major speaking role in the movie, Sheryl Lee was versatile enough to play the roles of two completely different ages. Some credit of her success belongs to the make-up artists who made her look fifty years older than normal. John Goodman's performance as Howard's "blue fairy god-mother" gave the audience a valid view of the characteristics we usually give to a fairy god-mother. He was funny, kind and gentle, yet gruff and serious at the same time. When it came time to be sympathetic, John Goodman played the role of a wonderful comforter. Each actor's role established a vital link to assist the director in achieving a successful story line, while suggesting a theme for the minds of the audience.
The theme of the movie was not given in a tearful monologue from the main character at the end of the movie, or from his "blue fairy god-mother." Instead, it was given in the middle of Howard's voice over when he says, "you must be careful what you pretend to be, because in the end you are who you pretend to be." Gordon justified this when Campbell watched an old film of one of his speeches and the face of himself on the screen was cast onto him as he watched it. Here, a realization was shot into Howard's mind of what he had done and regret had finally settled in.
With the help of Kurt Vonnegut, Keith Gordon took a daring step in filmmaking while creating a masterful piece of art. He took a start-studded cast and molded them into an art form. Many modern-day movies tend to be redundant in their means of getting to the point that they are trying to express. Gordon as well as Vonnegut embraced their unique approaches to create a piece of fiction that is not seen often. Movies like Mother Night are rare; however, we should be open to them when they do come along. From artists like Gordon and Vonnegut, we can learn new approaches to many aspects and experiences present in life, and maybe learn not to take ourselves so seriously.