Flashback: Safe (1995) – Julianne Moore in Todd Haynes’ unsettling parable of America’s self-help culture and Aids crisis
With its long shots and lack of drama, the film was misunderstood on its debut but has since been recognised as a classic, serving as metaphor for the confusion surrounding the Aids epidemic of the 80s
Todd Haynes’ beautifully precise and intelligent second feature, Safe confused critics when it debuted, in 1995, as it didn’t follow the conventions of American cinema. The film is inconclusive, lacks dramatic conflict and even any moments of drama, and keeps its main character at a great distance from the viewer.
A clever metaphor for the problems facing Aids sufferers in the 1980s and 90s – although the actual disease is not part of the story – it makes its point by depicting restraint rather than action. Over the past 20 years, Safe has matured into an undisputed independent masterpiece. Julianne Moore’s marvellously expressive performance in the lead also catapulted her into the A-list.
Moore plays Carol, a quiet housewife in California’s San Fernando Valley. Carol’s life is mundane but she has a caring husband (Xander Berkeley), good friends and a nice house. Out of nowhere, Carol starts to suffer from seizures that the doctors can’t find a medical cause for. A television programme leads Carol to believe that she’s suffering from an environmental illness – a negative reaction to the chemicals in everyday items.
