{"id":240,"date":"2009-09-28T09:01:32","date_gmt":"2009-09-28T15:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/?p=240"},"modified":"2009-09-22T13:17:29","modified_gmt":"2009-09-22T19:17:29","slug":"into-temptation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/2009\/09\/into-temptation\/","title":{"rendered":"Into Temptation"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Into Temptation<\/a><\/em>, the new film written and directed by Patrick Coyle, takes its viewers on a trip through guilt, sin, and redemption. The film explores the causes and effects in a person\u2019s life that lead, ultimately, to desperate decisions. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>If it sounds like heavy subject matter, it is. But the film manages to not get bogged down in pity for its characters, though it relies heavily on religious motivations and traditions. Those who have never been Catholic, and particularly those who have never been religious, may find it difficult to sympathize with Linda\u2019s desire for absolution. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Linda, played by Kristin Chenoweth (better known as Olive from Pushing Daisies<\/em>) is a prostitute seeking to get all her affairs \u2013 excuse the pun, please \u2013 in order before she ends her existence. Though her actions belie it \u2013 it\u2019s been 19 years since her last confession \u2013 she\u2019s apparently never mentally left the Catholic Church, and she looks for solace by visiting a confessional booth just as the priest is hoping to end his shift.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>The tale of her life, frustratingly excised from the scene, coupled with his impending need to perform mass, leave the priest at a loss for words \u2013 so much, in fact, that he neglects his duty to the wayward soul. Linda leaves, without being forgiven, and Father Buerlein (played by Jeremy Sisto) spends the rest of the film searching out this fallen Catholic. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Buerlein\u2019s search is a maddening race against the clock. He knows only Linda\u2019s birthday (she intends to take her life on her birthday) and the sound of her voice. He tries to sketch her appearance, but seeing her only obliquely through the screen of a confessional booth, he knows only the shape of her mouth, her neck, and her chest (donned, appropriately, with a cross nestled in a plunging neckline). Buerlein seeks out the assistance of neighbors, taxicab drivers, bartenders, and fellow priest Father O\u2019Brien, played by Brian Baumgartner (better known as Kevin from the Office<\/em>), whose cynicism and greed paint a striking juxtaposition between the two religious leaders. In time, Buerlein has no other choice but to go literally into temptation, and our hapless hero soon finds himself hobnobbing with pimps, prostitutes, and criminals as he visits night clubs, adult stores, and seedy back alleys. <\/span><\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Again, for non-believers, the characters challenges may seem a little trite and his difficulties unfounded. But without the limitations and structure imposed by his religion, the film would have little to go on. As it is, Buerlein openly expresses his own doubts and his unease with the rigidity; in one scene, he tells a parishioner he isn\u2019t sure if prayer even works. In another, appalls his congregation by using unsavory words. \u201cLet\u2019s say a prayer for the bastard who mugged me,\u201d he says from the pulpit.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Into Temptation<\/em> transpires in Minneapolis, and it offers many scenes and shots of places familiar to Twin Cities residents. The film is beautifully bookended with flashbacks to Linda\u2019s childhood, both of which shed light on the story that unfolds in between. Apart from a pointless subplot featuring the return of Buerlein\u2019s former lover, the story is tight and the pacing adequate. Go see this film before it leaves the few theaters it\u2019s in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bottom Line: B<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Into Temptation, the new film written and directed by Patrick Coyle, takes its viewers on a trip through guilt, sin, and redemption. The film explores the causes and effects in a person\u2019s life that lead, ultimately, to desperate decisions. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If it sounds like heavy subject matter, it is. But the film manages to not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books-film-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":244,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240\/revisions\/244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zimmerscope.com\/Verbisaurus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}