Review: Gattaca (Re-edited)
made by wincestuouslove
Don't know why I haven't watched it before...
The most “realistic” sci-fi film according to NASA, goes to 1997′s Gattaca, starring Ethan Hawke, Jude Law and Uma Thurman. The movie was about “a genetically inferior man assumes the identity of a superior one in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel.”
Review: Gattaca
Author: wincestuouslove
Summary: To describe the subtle homoeroticism exists between the main characters
(Credit to killerpossum @ tumblr)
"What is it about Jude Law that makes other guys fall in love with him and want to be him at the same time?"
-- kattahj
In a genetic engineering dominating world, Vincent Freeman (played by Ethan Hawke) is a natural birth whose heart defect keeps him out of all but the most menial jobs and classified as a lower class.
In order to infiltrate the Gattaca corporation, a company involved in space exploration, Vincent rents the genetic identity of one of the "valid" elite, now a paraplegic crippled by a car accident and a depressed alcoholic but still genetically perfect man, Jerome Eugene Morrow (played by Jude Law).
(Credit to iwillfongyou- & iacceptchaos @ tumblr)
As they both are identified as Jerome Morrow in the movie,
I would like to now distinguish them by calling Jude's character "Eugene", his middle name,
and Ethan's character "Vincent" in this review.
Note that "Eugene" means well-born, well-bred.
Living Arrangement
In order to takeover the new identity, Vincent moves into Eugene's house.
So with the new living arrangement, Vincent lives upstairs.
(Credit to iwillfongyou- @ tumblr)
Undergoes a sequence of sugeries, including a leg elongation, Vincent finally transforms himself to fit with Eugene's physical profile.
(Credit to thisisnotbruce, iacceptchaos, lawyerupasshole & iwillfongyou- @ tumblr)
Eugene: You alright?
Vincent: Yeah.
Eugene: Wanna go dancing?
Role Playing
Vincent manages to blend in the superior world by passing off Eugene provided tissue samples,
such as blood, urine, hair threads, skin chipping, as his own
during the regular genetic tests used to screen out those "invalid", and completely adopts Eugene's identity.
Vincent: While Eugene supplied me with a new identity, I paid the rent and kept him in the style to which he'd become accustomed.
From here, we know Vincent acts as Eugene's "keeper".
Vincent is exterior and the beardwinner of this relationship,
while Eugene has to be stall-fed and left to finish the "housework" at home while Vincent is out working.
Eugene initially is bitter in the notion of this living arrangement and dispises Vincent's faith in his plan.
We learn that it is due to his self-despair as being the second best.
Eugene: You had to be a right-hander. No one orders southpaws any more.
Vincent: Jerome Morrow. It's a nice name.
Eugene: It's my name.
IVincent: can't be you without it.
Eugene: What makes you think you can be me at all? Look at this. Look at it.
Vincent: It's nice. I'm impressed, is it real?
Eugene: Are you color-blind, too, Vincent? It's silver.
(Credit to themoonisgreen & iwillfongyou- @ tumblr)
Eugene: Jerome Morrow was never meant to be one step down on the podium. With all I had going for me, I was still second best. Me! So how do you expect to pull this off?
Vincent: I don't know, exactly.
Eugene: Your signature needs work.
Eugene: What's up there?
Vincent: That's want I want to find out, Jerome.
Eugene: Call me Eugene, my middle name. If you're going to be Jerome, you'd better start getting used to it.
Stargazing is kinda romantic, isn't it? Even if Eugene looks deadpan as always.
Sharing of Body Fluid
Vincent: I gotta get going. Where's my sample?
Eugene: In the refrigerator. Door on the left.
Vincent: Which pouch?
Eugene: Oh, any of them.
Vincent: You think I should test it?
Eugene: If you like.
[The machine shows the sample fails]
Eugene: My God, what's wrong with the machine?
Vincent: It's nothing wrong with the machine. It's a hot sample. You've been drinking again !
Eugene: I haven't.
Vincent: Oh Christ Eugene, it's 8 o'clock in the morning!
Eugene: I haven't!
Vincent: This is no joke. My interview is in an hour! There's more vodka in this piss than there is piss!
Eugene: I'm sorry. I had half a glass to celebrate. Try Friday's, that one will be OK.
Vincent: There's only Wednesday left.
Eugene: Wednesday. That's the one.
[The sample passes and Vincent carrys the urine pouch in his inner thigh.]
Everyday Eugene shares his superior body fluid, mostly blood and urine, with Vincent.
Such action is easily interpreted as a homoerotic subtext.
The Development
In order to pass the running programme, Vincent has to pre-record the rhythm of a perfect heart to cover that of his own defective heart.
Thanks to the genetic engineering, Eugene has a heart stronger than an ox and rhythmic like a metronome.
Eugene: How much do you need?
Vincent: 20 minutes.
[Eugene starts wheeling while Vincent puts on a headphone to listen to his steady heartbeat.]
Neither of them has much talking in this scene but their intimacy and tension grows when
Vincent is watching Eugene workout and listening to his heartbeat for a while.
Eventually, Vincent is chosen be the navigator of the flight to Titan, the biggest satellite of Saturn.
Re-edited: Eugene is surprised (but not excited) that Vincent is going to leave him very soon so he suggests to get drunk together (not even a celebration).
Eugene: What happened?
Vincent: I'm going up.
Eugene: When?
Vincent: End of the week.
Eugene: End of the week, that soon?
(Credit to themoonisgreen @ tumblr)
[...]
[In a round dining table]
Vincent: I hate to think of you alone in that room for a year.
Eugene: Well don't think about it. Anyway, the room I'm stuck in is bigger than your tin cans.
Vincent: You know what I'm saying. What are you gonna do?
Eugene: I have my books. I go places in my head.
Vincent: That'd be help if you had some company.
Eugene: I have visitors.
Vincent: Yeah well, none that you don't pay.
Eugene: I wouldn't have it any other way.
Vincent: Seriously, what are you going to do?
Eugene: I'm going to finish this. *drinks the whole glass*
Eugene: What's Titan like this time of year?
Vincent: What's Titan like? Titan is exactly like this.
(Credit to scofielding @ tumblr)
Vincent: All the time, it's got a cloud around that's so thick, no one can tell what's underneath.
Eugene: Maybe there's nothing there.
Vincent: There's something there. You should be going, instead of me.
Eugene: Why is that?
Vincent: 'cause up there your legs wouldn't matter.
Eugene: I'm scared of heights.
Vincent certainly shows concern about Eugene's loneliness and sorrows over his loss of mobility.
The Manhandling
The difference of strength is actually the trigger for slashes.
Thanks to Eugene for looking physically extremely vulnerable in the manhandling scenes, as if he is not emotinally fragile enough thoughtout the entire movie.
In the following scene, the homoeroticism glows when the moment Eugene extends his arms to gesture Vincent to carry him on bed.
Half embracing, half proping up a drunk Eugene, Vincent eventually loses balance.
So Eugene ends up rolling on floor in Vincent's arms.
(Credit to thisisnotbruce @ tumblr)
The drunk Eugene is dead weight like a rag doll as he passively allows Vincent to position him on bed.
The next moment, Eugene opens his heart to Vincent and makes a confession of his suicidal past.
Eugene: No, I wasn't drunk.
Vincent: What do you mean you're not drunk?
Eugene: When I walked in front of that car.
Vincent: What car?
Eugene: I stepped right out in front of it. I've never been more sober in my life.
Vincent: Go to sleep.
Eugene: I couldn't even get that right, could I?
(Credit to themoonisgreen & scofielding @ tumblr)
Eugene: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
Vincent: Go to sleep.
Eugene: *grabs and pulls Vincent closer* I'm proud of you, Vincent.
Vincent: You must be drunk to call me Vincent.
All told, Eugene's depressive reactions to Vincent's leaving foretell the destructive path he will choose at the end.
Later in the movie, Vincent also lifts Eugene up and carrys him downstairs in a newlywed style.
The Loyal Doppelgangers
The selflessness, the indistinguishableness and the twinning effect of Vincent and Eugene give us a sublime subtext of two men conjoining and absorbing into each other.
Two fuse into one.
They are inseparable as they complete with each other's presence and gradually become the other's half.
Eugene, who was initially bitter about their trade, becomes very supportive and encouraging to Vincent's choice.
(Credit to effingluck @ tumblr)
Eugene: I could've rented myself somebody with a spine if I'd known you'd go belly-up on me at the last fuckin' gasp. You can't quit on me now. I've put too much into this. What do you want me to do? Wheel in there and finish the job myself?
Vincent: Eugene, they are going to find me.
Eugene: You still don't understand, do you? When they look at you, they don't see you any more. They only see me.
RENTED MYSELF SOMEBODY
RENTED MYSELF SOMEBODY
RENTED MYSELF SOMEBODY
"Whenever I want to do something, you say you can't afford it, but you gave RENTERS cigarette cases." Bosie?
In an effort to conceal Vincent's identity, Eugene's loyalty is clearly demonstrated when, slowly and painfully, he belly-crawls up the spiral staircase - remember, he's scared of heights.
(Credit to shirtlifters & iacceptchaos @ tumblr)
Vincent: How are you, Jerome?
Eugene: Not bad, Jerome.
Vincent: How the hell did you get up here?
Eugene: I can always walk. I've been faking it.
The Shared Love-Interest
When Vincent goes out for a date with Irene (played by Uma Thurman), he covers it up from Eugene.
Eugene, on the other hand, is already bitter about the date that he is drinking a bottle and testing Vincent.
Vincent: I'm going out.
Eugene: Where are you going?
Vincent: Well if I'm gonna get arrested tomorrow, I'm gonna go out tonight.
Eugene: Are you sure that's a good idea to go out?
Vincent: That was your idea not to change anything.
Eugene: Who's going?
Vincent: I'd say everybody.
Eugene: Everybody hmm?
Vincent: If I don't go it'll look suspicious.
[Skeptically, Eugene looks down the window and sees Irene.]
As Vincent is dining with Irene, the director intentionally shows us that Eugene is left alone in the house to prepare body samples and amuse himself.
(Credit to emilyhowlett @ tumblr)
Later, when doppelganging Vincent, Eugene conveninently asks Irene, who is supposedly dating "Jerome", for a kiss.
(Credit to scofielding @ tumblr)
The shared kiss between Vincent and Eugene through a girl strengthen their bonding in a sexual aspect.
Besides, both of them refer themselves as "us" while looking forward to Irene's acceptance to their equivalence and inseparability.
Eugene: I think she likes us.
Vincent: Yeah, sure, just give her a little time and she'll get used to the idea.
The Departure
Eugene: Come on, I have your samples ready.
Vincent: I don't need any samples where I'm going.
Eugene: You might when you get back. Everything you need to last you two lifetimes.
Vincent: Why have you done all this?
Eugene: So Jerome will always be here when you need him.
Vincent: Where are you going?
Eugene: I'm traveling, too.
Vincent: I don't know how to thank you.
Eugene: No, no. I got the better end of the deal. I only lent you my body, you lent me your dream.
[Eugene gives Vincent a card.]
Eugene: Not until you're upstairs.
LENT YOU MY BODY
LENT YOU MY BODY
LENT YOU MY BODY
O_O
(Credit to thisisnotbruce & poemme @ tumblr)
Turns out, Eugene has enclosed a lock of hair in the card that he gave Vincent.
Needless to say, a "lock of hair" carries so many symbolic value throughout history and sentimentally represents one's love or loss .
At the end of the movie, when Vincent sees Eugene's hair, he says:
Vincent: For someone who was never meant for this world, I must confess, I'm suddenly having a hard time leaving it.
Note that he has said something similar to his love interest, Irene, when they were dating:
Vincent: It's funny. You work so hard, you do everything you can to get away from a place, and when you finally get your chance to leave, you find a reason to stay.
Re-edited: It is cystal clear that Eugene is who Vincent miss when he is launching,
but does it indicate that Vincent has the same feeling to Eugene as to his love interest?
Or, is Vincent thinking about Eugene all the time, even when he was dating Irene?
Despite Uma Thurman was the "leading" and far more popular than Jude back to 1997, her character, Irene, does not contribute as much as Jude's Eugene to the plot.
Honestly, Irene could be taken away from the script and the story would still function well.
The insertion of this character seems to be only for marketing.
Eugene, on the other hand, IS the centre of the plot.
Without him, Vincent would be still stuck with his genetic disadvantage. Hence, no story to tell.
Also, Eugene forms an irreplaceable, irreversible bond with Vincent which is much more powerful than everything Vincent would have formed with Irene.
In the original script, Eugene lends, picks and knots the tie for Vincent before his first date with Irene.
While the homoerotic undertone of the movie is quite obvious, there is one more gay subtext:
In the deleted scene, the geneticist tells Vincent's parents that he had removed the "gay gene" from Vincent's in-vitro brother. Does this "gay gene" indicate something?
BTW, Jude always outshines everyone when playing a supportive, rich and spoiled, homoerotic, die-young role.
His Eugene is so twisted, so ill, so pitiable that you want to (make Vincent to) pinch his cheeks, hold him and then kiss him better. Then carry him to bed and have mad sex.
As homoerotic as most of Jude's movie roles are, I am tempted to read a Vincent/Eugene fanfic rather than other pairings.
Unfortunately, those are very rare:
Title: The Body
Author: ceridwenamyed
Pairing: Vincent/Eugene
Words: 1,886
Rating: R
Summary:
Title: Achieving Perfection
Author: lysrough
Pairing: Vincent/Eugene
Words: 1,033
Rating: R
Summary: I got the better end of the deal. I only lent you my body - you lent me your dream. -- Jerome, "Gattaca"
Title: But Not For Me
Author: MonaR.
Pairing: Vincent/Eugene
Words: 2,976
Rating: R
Summary: "Everytime we say good-bye, I die alittle. . ."
Credit to
subzin for the transcription