The Bondage (2006) User Reviews

Great storytelling

[phoenix-82 · 8/10 · 14 March 2006]

I really liked this movie; it excels in telling the story of one young man's humanity, contrasted with the inhumanity of the correctional system. You become immersed in the life of Charlie, and you start to make the voyage through the film with him. As you begin trying to understand everything going on in his life, you contrast it to a system that does not see people as individuals. A system the judges people's character based upon flawed and superficial measurements.

Superb acting was essential to telling the story, and the cast did a fantastic job. There are many shots in the film that rely heavily on the facial expression of Charlie, and Michael Angarano delivered.

I think the cinematography really fit the film as well. The use of lighting, colors and shots always seemed appropriate, and really was consistent with the overall vision.

In short, storytelling is often times a lost art, but Bondage did a great job at telling us a story. It gives the audience the chance to walk in someone else's shoes for a few hours, and learn from their experience. I really enjoyed that experience.

-E

Do yourself a favor and just see it.

[superjxiv · 8/10 · 12 March 2006]

I was lucky enough to see the world premiere of this film at SXSW just the other day. I knew little about the movie but wanted at least one screening under my belt at an actual film festival. The screening was in the morning, so I ended up talking about it to everyone around me the rest of the day. It's been the highlight of the trip, other than meeting the cast and director.

In the opening moments of Bondage, a first time feature for directer Eric Allen Bell, young Charlie Edwards is arrested for vandalism and arson. The corrections industry in California is uninterested in addressing his emotional trauma; they just want to store his body for the course of his four year sentence. To escape the harassment of the gangs and the corrections officers, Charlie feigns insanity and moves to a psychiatric hospital. The doctors push drugs on top of drugs to nullify everything in Charlie's world. And all Charlie wants for himself is to live his own life without the oppressive rules made up by other people.

The narrative flexes the sequence of events, seamlessly incorporating past, present and future moments into a coherent storyline. There are moments when the film explores the tactics Charlie's parents would use to enforce their standards of control, including a particularly harrowing sequence where they drag him into the bathroom and force his hands to scrub out the tub as he pleads for mercy. A character late in the film makes this observation: parents who box their teen into a corner with rules and emotional manipulation are so shocked when he comes out fighting, it's no wonder they call him crazy.

Michael Angarano in the role of Charlie had a formidable task carrying the film, and he excels at giving the character a sense of tragedy. By mere body posture and softly spoken lines, we see Charlie as a damaged and frightened person, who understands little about why he's so deeply interred in a system that cares little for his well being. Illeana Douglas and Eric Lange as Charlie's parents are haunting with the complexity they bring to what is essentially the forces of old and evil. The film does not forgive them, but it creates in them real people, who do both wonderful and terrible things. Just like Charlie. It would be an oversight not to mention the adorable Mae Whitman as another product of an abusive home. Her character may have the least amount of screen time, but her impact on the film's final thirty minutes could be felt for hours after the credits rolled.

There's a famous poem by Phil Larkin called "This Be The Verse." It ran through my head the entire time I sat in the theater. IMDb won't allow me to post it here due to the expletives it contains, but it's not hard to find after a quick search on Google.

Go see this movie.

• Jon

Breaks Convention

[FilmPerson23 · 10/10 · 21 March 2006]

I saw this movie while I was at South By Southwest. What particularly intrigued me about it was the fact that asked a lot of questions and answered none of them. You rarely see that anymore. Most movies, even the independents, will give the audience some sense that all of the questions have answers and that the conclusions to people's dilemmas are satisfying to anyone sitting in a dark room eating popcorn.

Don't get me wrong, I like going to the movies and I like a lot of what I see. I work a 9 to 5 job and a lot of the time I just want to watch mindless comforting good old fashioned entertainment.

But that's not all I want to see. Somethings I enjoy a movie with characters and themes that I can empathathize with on some level, a story that is making observations that no one else is making. Bondage did that for me. It showed a different side of the American dream. It's a movie that dares to show what happens when everything breaks down, who pays (the next generation) and how that cycle perpetuates itself.

That alone is interesting enough, but it also serves as an allegory for what is happening in the world today. I'm not an independent film snob by any means. Most of them are boring actually. I really liked Titanic when it came out. But what I liked about Titanic, besides all of the obvious stuff, is what I like about Bondage. Both movies are saying something bigger than what they appear to be saying.

Titanic says that if we get big enough and arrogant enough we will become vulnerable and this could sink the whole ship. If the ship sinks, most of us are going down. Clearly that movie is talking about America.

Bondage does the same thing, but in a much different way. Bondage not only gets into the private lives, yearnings, secrets, regrets and longings (to be free of something) of each of its characters, but it also seems to be asking a much bigger question. And I think that question is what makes it almost a cautionary tale (like Titanic). The question is, "What are we, as a society of civilized people, doing here? What are we ignoring? What is the loose thread that can unravel the whole garment?" I found the interview with the director and cast very interesting at the end because the director, who also wrote the script, was talking about this. It was as though the movie had set out to take the temperature of an entire nation and hold up the thermometer. I will not be surprised, when this movie is in theaters, if some people look at that thermometer and don't like what they see. I've read some of these posts and I can already see the desire on the part of some people to attempt to kill the messenger because they don't like the news he brings.

Bondage is a story worth telling and it is well told. It is rich and entertaining, darkly funny at times, unbearably sad at others, engaging the whole way and sometimes even hard to watch. If it were out, I would have gone to see it again by now. It's just one of those films that stays with you.

Changed my perspective...

[RightIsWrong21 · 10/10 · 24 March 2006]

I saw this movie at the South By Southwest film festival. I didn't really want to go but I was there with some friends who really wanted to see it so I came along.

Having come from a pretty close-knit family and not one with a lot of problems, I never really stopped to consider how drastically different my life would have been, would be, if I had been adopted by someone else. What if I had different parents, a different circumstance, hand't gotten away with some of my pranks in high school? Not that I had never given this thought, but "Bondage" really made me look at it from an entirely different point of view.

This movie showed me dysfunction from the inside. I got to see what Juvenile Hall looks like, feels like. I felt what it was like to have your own parents betray you. I got the vicarious thrill of running from the cops, deceiving authority figures and wanting to get away with it. I also gained some insight into the world of Psychiatry.

About psychiatry... this started me reading the book "Toxic Psychiatry" which is mentioned on the IMDb page for "Bondage". It is amazing to me, just like the director mentioned at the end of the Q&A (yes, I stayed for that), what a huge industry is built around more or less creating these labels, these alleged mental disorders and then medication youth with expensive drugs. This satisfies a "Toxic Parent" into believing that they are absolved of responsibility and that the child just has some "chemical imbalance". This aspect of the film was particularly thought-provoking and eye-opening for me.

The hero, Charlie Edwards, is such a perfect anti-hero. He might be the only sane person in the movie. The world outside of him might have the chemical imbalance, or some kind of imbalance. But what's cool is that there seems to be nothing preachy about this movie at all. In fact, the audience was laughing quite a bit through it and there are some pretty emotionally hardcore moments. It can be very intense at times, and then just innocent and funny at others.

I would recommend this to all of my friends. It's been 9 days now since I've seen it and I still can't get "Bondage" out of my head. This is the kind of movie, like "Fight Club" that I would see again and again.

"Girl, Interrupted" meets "Garden State"

[EddieAndRex · 10/10 · 23 January 2006]

Totally not what you expect it to be. Lot's of cool music and cool scenes. Michael Angarano might be the next Sean Penn. This guy Jose Pablo Cantillo is probably going to become a big star also off of this. The ending seems like it would be a great beginning for like an HBO series or something. How come so many movies these days totally suck? This is more like "Napoleon Dynamite" or "Garden State" but more serious. However, totally different from anything I've ever seen - and I haven't seen the whole film. I have a feeling it will probably get picked up by Lions Gate or Fox Searchlight. Seems like their kind of picture. The soundtrack is going to be awesome. I don't know why Mae Whitman isn't in more movies because she is really, really good. So is Micheal K. Williams from "The Wire". He plays a totally badass Juvy security guard.

What will it take to finally get this released???

[jackdonahue1972 · 5/10 · 3 July 2011]

So... What the FAWK does it take to see this movie??? I'm a big fan of the lead character, Michael Angarano. And I suspect he was perfect for the part. Being a former staff person at several youth facilities myself, I would really like to see this movie, even if just to see this supposed true life story from the writer's eyes. From what I've heard, the CA system is pretty brutal, NOT like the facilities >I< worked at. It also seems like a lot of people put a lot of hard work and money into this. Just as a side note, Director and Producers might want to think about changing the name so this film doesn't come off sounding like some cheap porn flick. It would be nice to see this work finally get released somewhere, even IF it goes direct to video. Good Luck and Best Wishes to all involved.

"Garden State" meets "Trainspotting"

[indyfan1983 · 10/10 · 28 February 2006]

I think that is a more accurate summary because, even though "Girl, Interrupted does deal with someone who is institutionalized, "Bondage" has nothing in common with the style or feeling of that film. It has more of a pace and an edge like "Trainspotting" in my opinion.

This movie is so not the kind of thing you would see coming from a major studio. It isn't lame or predictable and it doesn't talk down to it's audience. This reminds me more of the kinds of stories that were being made into movies like in the late sixties and early seventies. I guess what I'm saying is it has like more of a soul.

Also the guy who wrote it and directed it and raised all the money to make it also lived it. And that has a power to it all its own.

This movie is totally original, and for that reason I think a lot of cynical types won't get it at all. I just know that the packed house at the premiere was filled with people who did get it. They loved the movie probably for the same reasons I do - I could relate.

I've never been through the experiences that the protagonist Charlie Edwards has, but I have certainly felt trapped and like my life was no longer my own. I think we all have and in the end I think that is why "Bondage" succeeeds.

Tonally inconsistent

[krazed131 · 4/10 · 12 March 2006]

Bondage is not about the strange sex acts that happen in New York City's underground brothels; it is a light, indie study of being held down by those around you which prevent you from developing your own sense of character and humanity. As interesting as that could've been, Bondage is an absolute disappointment.

Read: will be picked up by a small distribution company and make a killing in hip indie markets.

The film is about young Charlie who lives in a dysfunctional household with terrible parents and a 15 year old kid brother who loves to push him into doing things he doesn't want to. In order to get out of the house, the two lie to their parents about going to church and end up at a park smoking pot and drinking beer. After sneaking out one night with his brother to vandalize the school, Charlie is caught by the police and sent to Juvenile hall. His brother manages to get off, and Charlie doesn't rat him out. The rest of the film focuses on Charlie's "horrific" experiences in prison and his eventual coming of age.

In retrospect, Bondage has a lot of great things going for it. Director Eric Allen Bell somehow picked the perfect cast of no-name actors to comprise his film, and they are all excellent. Particularly fantastic is young Michael Angarano as Charlie, I'm sure if this gets ample distribution that we'll be seeing a lot more from young Michael. But Bell's poor script chokes the potential out of the film's throat. All of the actors and themes are downright wasted here, as Bell would love for us to take his themes more seriously, but can't seem to shake the silly adolescent humor. Bondage is another modern American independent film that has no idea what subtlety means. I don't need a two minute monologue by the protagonist's love interest telling us that he is a good person who just hasn't been given a chance. Stop beating the audience over the head already; we aren't stupid.

Bell's film is the most recent case of the indie film cliché. The most recent serving of Garden State/Thumbsucker etc. wave of films, Bondage features everything from poorly placed flashbacks to flashy split screen editing and a terribly obvious soundtrack. One scene which made me and the woman to my right crack up, finds Charlie placed in solitary confinement with a Death Cab song playing over it. If the film isn't screaming, "COME ON, PLEASE LIKE ME!" it's crying, "COME ON, FEEL SORRY FOR MY CHARACTERS!" Bell's film is at times very funny and can be surprisingly entertaining. But for what director Eric Allen Bell was hoping to achieve in his conveyance of themes, he fails miserably. The tonally inconsistent first feature effort from the director should be a stepping stone on which to learn by, and improve next time. This film is noticeably better than other first timer's films, it's just so scattershot and obvious that I can't recommend it.

A teenage "Taxi Driver"

[StopThePop111 · 10/10 · 4 March 2006]

So I work in this crazy business, the film business. And the word I've been hearing is that it is a "teenage Taxi Driver". So, I got my hands on a copy of the script. I can see why people are comparing it so much to "Garden State" because of it's sort of coming-of-age appeal. However, "Girl, Interrupted" was slow and introspective while I found this script to be a real page-turner. The story was non-traditional and very unpredictable. I also get the comment that somebody made about "Trainspotting". I can see that. However, the "Taxi Driver" comparison is the one that, to me, makes the most sense. It deals with a person who has been through too much, seen too much, and the only way they can express it is through rage, which comes out when you least expect it. At least, I never saw it coming. Nor could I have ever predicted the end for that matter. This movie is in competition at South By Southwest this year and I wish them all the luck in the world. The script reads confidently, like a movie that should be seen.

Incredible

[romonthone · 10/10 · 7 January 2015]

"The Bondage" by Eric Allen Bell has one of the best endings to a movie I think I have ever seen. If you have not seen this movie, see it. This is incredible. It's available for download on a bunch of sites. The storyline is amazing. I could not stop myself watching the movie until the very ending. Every single scene of this movie was amazing to watch, and the best part was the ending. I think it really exposes the horrific juvenile justice system. And the industry built up around medicating kids instead of looking at other factors, like their horrible parents. Every parent of a teenager needs to see this film. It is from first time film director Eric Allen Bell.

Enjoyed it

[DianaLJenny · 10/10 · 17 November 2014]

This movie is finally available on several sites online using TOR. I really, really enjoyed it. There were a couple parts where I cried, but it's not a sad movie. It makes you think but it's also unpredictable and crazy and fun. Wish it was available on iTunes. What other thinks I don't know, but I personally enjoyed the whole setup and story. I look forward to the next movie by this filmmaker. He is very talented filmmaker who is creative as well. His thought provoking concepts impressed me from the very beginning till the end. I had not heard of him before but for a first picture, this one is very moving and tells a good story.

Tonally Perfect

[onetbReel · 10/10 · 2 July 2006]

I disagree with the person whose post says that this movie is tonally inconsisent. Judging from how people responded to this post, I see that I am not the only one. This movie is, in a lot of ways, radical. The storyline is original and very coherent, but the story telling method is unconventional. This is not Spider Man 3. This is a movie that makes you think. But unlike a lot of movies that make you think, I was never bored. Seeing the insides of Juvenile Hall and a nut house for kids was a pretty wild ride actually. The movie did not go where I thought it was going to, and I think that's what I like about it the most. This is especially true about how the movie ends. It was astonishing and thought-provoking and challenges a lot of ideas that similar movies are trying to peddle. This film is punk rock in movie form.

I thought it was pretty good

[TheMoonLies · 10/10 · 10 December 2006]

It is very "indy" and that's what I liked about it. There is very little about this small film that says "Hollywood". The performances were incredible. Most importantly though was the story. I just think this is real stuff and he (the director) tackled it with such sensitivity and unpredictability. When I finished watching it I felt good. Before I turned on the DVD (oops, I'm not supposed to have a copy so "shhhh...") I thought it was going to be too sad. Actually kind of agree with the other user comment that said that the main kid was like James Dean. I hope this movie goes to theaters because I think a lot of people my age will see it.

One of those films that deserves the label "important"

[larry-411 · 10/10 · 28 December 2006]

This is a powerful film which defies categorization. But more than just about any other film I've seen this year, it's the power of the performances that makes it a must-see. So I thought I'd forgo the typical review and simply honor the wonderful actors in this film.

Griffin Dunne: As the psychiatrist assigned to counsel Charlie, Mr. Dunne almost steals the show. Despite its heavy subjects, the film has many lighthearted moments, and some of the biggest laughs come in these scenes. This is one brilliant comic actor, and must have been a riot to work with. I thought of Eugene Levy at his best. Every word, every nuance in the exchanges between Dunne and Angarano in these scenes is priceless.

Evan Ellingson: Plays Charlie's younger but taller brother Mark. He is slightly more mischievous than Charlie. Is he more the instigator here or just a willing participant? You'll just have to see for yourself. I did envy the closeness of the two boys' relationship, though. They seem more friends than brothers and I certainly didn't experience that in my own life, which made it that much more poignant.

Eric Lange: Dear old Dad. Lange is appropriately scary as the father who can turn moods on a dime. Scenes shown in flashback illustrate some of the events in Charlie's life which lead up to his fateful acting out and subsequent incarceration. I really hated this guy, and that is testament to Lange's talent. He was my father, too. I suspect you'll despise him as much as I did. Or will you feel sorry for him?

Mae Whitman: The adorable and aptly named Angelica, Charlie's newly acquired friend in the latter stages of his ordeal. Whitman enters the film like a light in the darkness, and has an on screen chemistry with Angarano which is apparent in all their scenes together. As the saying goes, "you'll laugh, you'll cry" -- Whitman brought me to tears in her portrayal of perhaps the one person who understands Charlie, something he has never known.

Illeana Douglas: Charlie's Mom. Everymom. I cannot say enough about the impact of her performance. Every moment she appears on screen is filled with emotion and tension. Douglas is absolutely breathtaking in her portrayal of the seemingly helpless, hapless parent struggling to gain control of her out-of-control child. And who can relate to that? Maybe every mother in America? In the world? She tries everything to repair the broken bond she once had with Charlie. Or was it ever really a bond in the first place? A heartbreaking performance.

Michael Angarano: Plays Charlie Douglas, the protagonist. Bondage is his story, based on the true life events of writer/director Eric Allen Bell. First off, it must be said that Angarano is arguably the most talented teenage actor in America, if not the most prolific. With 4-6 films a year under his belt, as well as numerous television appearances, one would think that we might have seen him tackle a role like this before. But we really haven't. This is not Will Stronghold, the lovable would-be superhero of Sky High, or "Baby Sid," the Lords of Dogtown skateboarder who isn't quite up to snuff with the other guys but is allowed to tag along because we feel sorry for him. This is a side of Angarano we haven't known -- angry, sad, and frightening. Charlie has known little but disappointment in life, from the fractured relationship with his father, to the strangely disconnected bond with his mother, to the little brother who seems to get away with everything -- it's all there. And it all adds up to rage, which leads to trouble, which plants poor Charlie in Juvenile Hall. But now he really does have some life-altering decisions to make. And he now needs to reach out and enlist the help of others to save himself -- something he has never had to do. Along the way, he is tamed by the system, but not whipped into submission. He still has the cojones to fight back, and he does it with every fiber of his being. This is a startling performance which should cause moviegoers to sit up and take notice. To call it chilling doesn't do it justice. I literally had shivers up my spine in scene after scene after scene. Angarano is riveting, captivating, endearing, and always sympathetic. Anyone who doesn't identify with Charlie's sense of loss and despair has no heart. We have all been in bondage in our own way, and Charlie's attempts to break free of his own bondage will resonate with the viewer long after leaving the theater. This is a performance that ranks among the best I've ever seen from someone so young. I'm not one for hyperbole but I was absolutely blown away by Angarano's performance and that alone is worth the price of admission many times over. This film will leave you thinking, and it is largely due to the brilliant subtleties and incredible range of Michael Angarano.

Riveting performance, on key with profound drama

[dannyid · 10/10 · 3 December 2006]

Like a Picasso masterpiece, the theme is subtle; the performance stunning and spectacular and scary! (Frenetic!) An inspiring way out for many. An therapeutic outlet to release inner turmoil from the strong content of the movie.

Riveting performance, on key with profound drama. Remember "Pink Floyd's" "the Wall" when Bob Geldof is sitting with a cigarette and the ash is burned all the way to the base without falling off?" Bondage was that good!

As I told EastCoastTalent, "Bondage" had some "Breakfast Club", "Pink Floyd, The Wall", and "Taps" in it, a performance not to be missed!

Michael Angarano even reach a James Dean(I) moment. Watch it and take note!

Awesome!

[dumbassbro · 10/10 · 30 May 2007]

I really liked this movie. I saw it at the Sedona Film Festival in Arizona. I think it was the best movie there. I felt like the main kid was me. I can't wait for it to come out in theaters so I can go see it again.

Hopefully it'll come out on video. I never went to Juvy but I had a lot of friend who did. I think this movie should be seen by as many people as possible. It is real to life and people need to know about this stuff.

Anyways, I think it's one of the best movies I've seen so far this year. There aren't many good movies out and this one rocks.