2. Incest - Close My Eyes (1991)
Natalie and Richard are brother and sister who don't really get to know each other until they are older as they have been brought up in different households. Richard is a highly successful town planner and Natalie smoulders resentfully as an administrative assistant in a series of low paid jobs. She does, however, land on her feet when she marries a wealthy investment banker named Sinclair. Richard meanwhile gives up his job to work as an eco-magazine journalist. The pair have always had a lot of sexual tension between them and this explodes into a highly passionate illicit affair. Richard becomes obsessed with Natalie and even attempts suicide. He shows up at Sinclair and Natalie's palatial home only to be whisked away by Sinclair on a boat trip where he finds out Sinclair has cottoned onto the fact that Natalie has a lover. Sinclair grills Richard but does not uncover the truth. Sinclair and Natalie decide to go and live in the States due to the recession. They hold a farewell party which Richard attends. He gives Natalie a hard time and the pair have a scuffle in the countryside. When they come back to the big house, it is clear to Sinclair what the set up is, but in a magnanimous gesture he forgives them. And it turns out Sinclair and Natalie are not going to the USA after all. Close My Eyes is a very tasteful film which treats the subject of brother/sister incest in a non exploitative way. The film is helped by a very strong cast (Alan Rickman, Saskia Reeves and Clive Owen as the three leads) and a sense of purpose other than merely portraying a film about incest. Themes of early 1990s Britain peek through - namely AIDS, the Recession and ecological awareness. It is a typical British film in many ways - tackling the type of issues so beloved by British film directors. The relationship between Richard and Natalie is conveyed through frank sexual scenes, but they are not sensationalised. The film is compelling as we follow the relationship. Saskia Reeves and Clive Owen make the film all too believable with the intensity of their acting. Deceptively looking like a mainstream film, I would have to describe Close My Eyes as an arthouse film instead. I cannot find the mainstream embracing this film. Instead, it has a niche of discerning viewers who appreciate it as a work of great merit by director Stephen Poliakoff.