Asia Argento's the Heart is Deceitful Above All Things

Asia Argento's the Heart is Deceitful above all Things

Asia Argento's auteur film The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things, had sensational elements to draw an audience to her film. Unfortunately, the film was so tough to sit through I doubt it could keep much of the audience in their seats.

The character portrayals were extreme and one-sided. The film was imbalanced by what could pass as a pornographic portrayal of a young child dragged to the bad side of the railroad only being held there by his impressionability, deceit and a very limited attachment to his biological mother.

What bothered me most about the film was not simply the portrayal of pedophile rape, abuse and serial neglect, but the writing and directing of the child in this film was cartoonish. Jeremiah, the protagonist, was a tabula rasa with absolutely no will or identity of his own. If there was any evidence of the "hoax" of J.T. Leroy, it was revealed here.

After the initial rape/abandonment scene, Winona Ryder gave a scary performance of a pushy, uncompassionate child therapist. It became obvious Jeremiah, his family and the other characters were merely colorful cardboard cut out puppets of sorts . The problem with this was "sensitive" material became a hipster joy-toy, recruiting acting employments of shock-originals like Marilyn Manson. For people who worship deranged sex and damage, it goes cow tipping. For the rest of us, it's just damn disturbing.

I have a tendency to dismiss projects like this one based on the fact that I really do not like people making light of others misfortune. The general public knows bad things happen to children. It's one thing to regard it with understanding. It's a another to make carnival art out of it.