Review: Foxcatcher
On January 26, 1996, John du Pont shot Dave Schultz three times in the driveway of Schultz's home, which was located on du Pont's 800-acre Pennsylvania estate. As Dave lay dying, the murderer - who was also heir to the fortune of one of America's wealthiest families - barricaded himself in his mansion for two days, only to be apprehended when he ventured outside to fix his heater after the police had cut off the power. He was found and guilty and sentenced to 13 to 30 years; he died in prison 13 years later. He was 72.
There was no definitive motive established though du Pont had always exhibited somewhat strange behaviour. During the trial, defense psychiatrists deemed du Pont a paranoid schizophrenic. At his sentencing, du Pont maintained his ill mental health when he killed Dave and apologised for the inconvenience caused to Dave's wife and children. One can read more about it in Foxcatcher: The True Story of My Brother's Murder, John du Pont's Madness, and the Quest for Olympic Gold penned by Dave's brother Mark with David Thomas.
Director Bennett Miller (Capote, Moneyball) and screenwriters E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman don't offer educated suppositions on what motivated the tragedy nor do they include that post-shooting standoff or the ensuing trial. They dissemble the reality to create a disturbing tale of money warping the American Dream. Wrestlers Dave and Mark were already Olympic gold medalists before du Pont entered their lives. Despite his achievements, Mark is barely scraping by, subsisting on ramen noodles and showing off his gold medal to elementary schoolkids for a fee that covers the cost of a hamburger or two. He and Dave meet up for their daily workout and the extended scene of their grappling tells you everything about the brothers - Dave is a tactician, Mark relies on brute strength; they love each other but they're competitive enough for the workout to end in sweat and blood.
Out of the blue, Mark is contacted by du Pont, who flies to his estate and invites him to train with the national U.S. wrestling team at Foxcatcher Farm, where he has established a state-of-the-art training facility. Du Pont impresses Mark not just with his wealth but with his patriotic desire to see the country soar. He wants Mark to go to the 1988 Olympics in Seoul and stun the world. Though Mark wants Dave to come along, Dave refuses - he has to think of his family but he encourages Mark not to let go of this great opportunity.
Once Mark settles on the estate and starts training, the film takes on the feel of a Grimm fairy tale. Here's this young man, fatherless for most of his life, now lavished with praise and attention from his wealthy benefactor. Something sinister lurks, however - du Pont is controlling, determined to prove himself to his mother, whose championship thoroughbreds have brought home most of the accolades displayed in the trophy room. His mother believes wrestling is a low sport "and I don't like to see you being low." Vanessa Redgrave has but a few scenes as Mrs. du Pont but is the embodiment of Old Money. There's a haughtiness in her demeanor that makes you believe du Pont when he shares with Mark that his mother paid the chauffeur's son to be his friend when he was growing up. Yet there's also a compassion there that makes you empathise with her disappointment in her son.
Du Pont believes in his bones that he's "giving [the men] a dream and I'm giving America hope," but his pursuit of that dream soon becomes a point of contention between himself and his young charge, who bristles when du Pont insists on luring Dave to the team. By the time Dave and the family arrive, du Pont and Mark are barely on speaking terms.
As excellent and finely attuned the direction and screenplay are, Foxcatcher lives and dies on the strength of its actors and they are incredible. Mark Ruffalo quickly establishes Dave's easy smile, friendly nature and goodheartedness - traits the socially awkward du Pont could never buy. Channing Tatum ascends to a new level here - his Mark is an inarticulate hulk plagued with rage and disappointment. His complete blanking of du Pont is chilling.
As philanthropist, ornithologist and philatelist du Pont, Carell is nothing short of magnificent. It could easily have been a caricature - Norman Bates as multimillionaire - but Carell shows you a man that has the drive and determination, not to mention the money, to be a winner but who simply does not possess the skills to do so. His silences are unnerving - witness the pause before the "Huh" he finally utters when Mark tells him Dave can't be bought, or the stillness before he administers a stinging slap to Mark. Note the manner in which he observes Dave as he competes at the 1987 World Championships - appraising him like a buyer assessing a potential acquisition. A weak predator that circles around physically strong but emotionally frail prey, Carell perfectly conveys how wealth can seduce, control and destroy.
Foxcatcher
Directed by: Bennett Miller
Written by: E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman
Starring: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Vanessa Redgrave, Sienna Miller, Anthony Michael Hall
