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Alan James (Rip Torn) is a legendary producer from the heyday of Memphis Soul. He now lives in well-earned comfort with his beautiful and much younger lover, Laura, a Muscovite living in the foreign world of Memphis and spending much of her time with their small child. Alan also has an adult son, Michael, with whom he has a difficult relationship, fired by disappointment, anger and bitterness.
Without warning, Michael returns home after several years' absence. Initially his hostility towards Laura is incandescent, but soon a complex relationship develops between the pair. Michael's entry into Laura's insular world holds up a mirror, revealing her constrained life and sublimated desires. His presence unhinges the ordered world in which she lives. In the bars and bedrooms of Memphis, a love triangle forms, illuminating the hearts and souls of these entangled lives.
Ira Sachs (MIFF 96 guest; [The Delta]) delivers a perfectly tuned drama of love and desire, and a great feel for the city of soul (Tennessee Williams' steamy South). [Forty Shades of Blue] screened at Berlin and Sundance, collecting the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. --- D Ira Sachs P Margot Bridger, Jawal Nga, Donald Rosenfeld, Mary Bing S Ira Sachs, Michael Rohatyn WS Celluloid Dreams TD 35mm/col/ 2004/107mins
Ira Sachs was born in Memphis, USA, in 1965. His films include [Vaudeville] (1991), [Lady] (1995), [The Delta] (1996).
