Forced Out
For 25 years Col. Margarethe Cammermeyer (Glenn Close - Fatal Attraction) has served in the army and having transferred to Seattle to be nearer to her sons from a previous marriage she is not only studying for a PhD and working with the reserves she also works at a VA hospital. She has also met Diane (Judy Davis - Barton Fink), an artist who she is in love with but that causes her a problem as whilst going for a promotion she admits to being a lesbian during an interview for security clearance. With being lesbian classified as an amoral act the army puts in to motions proceedings to discharge her, but with the support of Diane and her family she decides to fight for her right to be in the army.
I have conflicted feelings over "Serving in Silence" as on one hand the true story on which it is based is very much one worth telling. But on the other it comes across like a dry re-enactment rather than a drama with passion. It makes it one of those movies which is interesting rather than entertaining, getting across the facts of the situation but never bringing the story to life.
On the interesting side it does do a good job of delivering the facts from how the whole situation kicked off to Margarethe deciding to tell her friends and family the truth in order to stand up for who she is. Aspects of it as we hear from another soldier what she faced after coming out is unsettling and there are many more aspects of the movie which are unsettling. It is the same when it comes to Margarethe's relationships especially with her father who is cold towards her even before her admitting as to who she is.
But as I said whilst "Serving in Silence" is interesting it just doesn't come to life. The characters feel very reserved rather than real and that leads to a lack of emotion. I am not on about melodramatic crying but a sense of passion when it comes to injustice. As such whilst "Serving in Silence" features the talents of Glenn Close, Judy Davis and Jan Rubes the performances end up very dry. In fact the actors which play her sons, which includes a young Ryan Reynolds, feel more alive than the main characters.
What this al boils down to is that "Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story" is an interesting movie which tells an interesting true story. But it is a movie which whilst interesting struggles to be entertaining as it lacks both energy and passion.
