A product of the nineties indie film scene, when dark and twisted were in and commercial considerations were very much out. The “erotic horror fable” CRUSH, which marked the feature directorial debut of New Zealand’s Alison Maclean (JESUS’ SON) and an early starring role for future Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden, was developed at the 1991 Sundance Institute alongside Quentin Tarantino’s RESERVOIR DOGS. Also in common with Tarantino’s film, CRUSH premiered at the 1992 Cannes film festival before getting a limited theatrical release a year later (with financial takings that were entirely as you’d expect).
The opening credits are presented over a bubbling mud lake in Rotorua, a New Zealand city known for geothermal emissions that mirror the roiling passions of the film’s protagonists. Foremost among them is Lane (Harden), a reckless, self-centered and promiscuous American woman with a Louise Brooks haircut. She’s first seen traveling with her literary critic friend (and possible lover) Christina (Donogh Rees) to interview the acclaimed novelist Colin Iseman (William Zappa), who lives in Rotorua. Before they can reach his house, alas, Lane’s reckless driving results in a car accident that leaves Christina a barely functioning vegetable.
Lane can’t manage to pay her friend a hospital visit, choosing instead to invade the life of Iseman and his tomboy daughter Angela (Caitlin Bossley). Lane seduces both father and daughter, who appear to be headed for a fate similar to that which befell Christina, at least before Lane’s overbearing personality alters the dynamic. Angela comes to really despise her new friend, and upon visiting the hospitalized Christina poisons her against Lane. Clearly somebody is going to die, although you’ll have a hard time predicting who that somebody is, or precisely how he/she meets his/her end.
Alison Maclean’s 1989 black-and-white short KITCHEN SINK (included on the CRUSH DVD), about a hairy fetus emerging from a kitchen sink that grows into a sexually active man, adequately showcased the twisted comedy, frank sexuality and fecund grossness that inform CRUSH. Maclean’s sensibilities don’t quite match those of her most obvious progenitor David Lynch or fellow countrywoman Jane Campion (known in 1992 for the Lynchian SWEETIE), being much quieter and more character centered than either. This makes for a low key and oft-boring “hangout” film, albeit one with a compelling doom-laden trajectory and at least one great performance.
Sexy, off-putting, charismatic and sharp-edged, Marcia Gay Harden’s Lane stands as a forerunner to nineties movie anti-heroines like those played by Linda Fiorentino in THE LAST SEDUCTION (1994) and Nicole Kidman in TO DIE FOR (1995). The entire film, in fact, can be called an extended performance reel, with all the charm and annoyance that designation suggests.
Vital Statistics
CRUSH
Hibiscus Films
Director: Alison Maclean
Producers: Bridget Ikin
Screenplay: Alison Maclean, Anne Kennedy
Cinematography: Dion Beebe
Editing: John Gilbert
Cast: Marcia Gay Harden, William Zappa, Donogh Rees, Caitlin Bossley, Pete Smith, Jon Brazier, Geoffrey Southern, Shirley Wilson, Denise Lyness, Jennifer Karehana, David Stott, Harata Solomon, Caroline De Lore, Trish Howie, Phil MacLachlan, Wayne McCoram