Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

Summary

“Truth, like art, is in the eye of the beholder. You believe what you choose and I’ll believe what I know.”

When I was sixteen or seventeen years old, I decided to read John Berendt’s book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. From the first few pages, I could tell that this was a very special book. The book is simultaneously a fantastic travelogue for the city of Savannah, Georgia, a true crime story, and an exploration of Southern voodoo. I have loved the book since I first read it and have reread it least once every ten years. I recently recommended the book to my wife and she found herself just as enamored with it as I had been half my lifetime ago. Because I had not revisited the book in years, we decided to watch the movie adaptation of the book from 1997. Warner Archive released the film on Blu-ray a few years ago and I purchased the film to check it out.

The adaptation of the book was directed by Clint Eastwood. The film stars John Cusack, Kevin Spacey, and Jack Thompson in major roles. Upon its release, the film had difficulty pleasing critics. Those who had read the book could not help but be disappointed with the film, because the book is beautifully written and loses some of its luster in translation. Those who had not read the book seemed more ready to admire the film, but still felt certain sequences dragged. Watching the film with my wife, I found it to be a fairly well made adaptation considering the limitations of the art form to properly capture the book.

In Savannah, reporter John Kelso (John Cusack) arrives to write a piece for Town and Country magazine. The piece is meant to focus on a social gathering thrown by millionaire art collector Jim Williams (Kevin Spacey.) As soon as John arrives in Savannah, he is struck by how strange and eccentric the citizens of the town are. For example, one man strolls through the park each day walking a leash which holds no animal. This is in order to walk the ghost of a dog. John also walks past an imposing young man named Billy Hanson (Jude Law) cleaning his Camaro. They exchange glances. Before the party is to begin, John meets with Jim Williams and his lawyer Sonny Seiler (Jack Thompson.) They have a unique request in terms of limiting what John can write about the event. John informs them that he will not sacrifice his integrity in order to write a five hundred word piece, but agrees that he will be fair. Jim lets John know that there are two events – one is the official party, and one is solely for bachelors. John’s apartment is directly across from Jim’s mansion and he watches as the night’s reveries begin. John has not been invited to the party, but when the party loses electricity, Mandy Nichols (Alison Eastwood) abruptly enters John’s apartment for ice. He accompanies her to the party and meets an assortment of characters. Spotting John, Jim gives him a tour of the premises. Billy storms in to a room where John and Jim are talking. After asking for money, Billy threatens Jim with a broken bottle. Jim takes it all in stride, though obviously embarrassed. As the party winds down, John heads back across the street. When sirens wail across the street, John walks back over. Billy Hanson has been shot to death and the mansion is now a crime scene. With his publisher’s permission, John stays in Savannah to cover the trial of Jim Williams. Jim allows himself to be interviewed by John and agrees to help fill in details along the way with the proviso that anything that John discovers along the way can be used in his defense. John is also introduced to a voodoo practitioner named Minerva (Irma P. Hall) by Jim. Jim hopes Minerva’s voodoo will help him win his case.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is not as good as the book. People that expect the film to match the book will be disappointed. I did not expect the film to match the book, because the travelogue aspects of the book would be hard to transplant to the big screen. The book is also infused with a spirit of mystery and excitement that comes across better in words than in images. I honestly think that, aside from a few small missteps, the movie does a solid job of telling the key story and portraying the main characters from the novel. My wife agreed that the movie was not as good as the book, but we also both enjoyed getting to see so many of the key places (including the Mercer House) from the book onscreen. It captures a specific time in Southern history that I remember well from my youth spent in the South.

There are a few instances where the film fails. For no reason that I can understand, they changed the main character’s name from John Berendt to John Kelso. The characters call him Kelso repeatedly. This is a superficial change, but it automatically hurts the authenticity of the film. The film’s climactic supernatural sequence almost works, but a strange musical cue and dissolving special effect make an effective sequence look goofy. That could have been (and should have been) saved in the editing room. Sometimes less is more but that was just a simple mistake. The film benefits from the presence of the actual Lady Chablis playing herself in the film, but the film focuses on that character longer than necessary. This hurts some of the pacing of the film. The beginning of the film looks silly as Minerva sits on a park bench and watches John’s flight come in, and the ending seems similarly silly as Minerva once again sits on a park bench talking to a squirrel. Both of these sequences should have been cut. Aside from these small grievances, there is a lot to like about the film.

I liked John Cusack in the central role of John Kelso. Cusack is appropriately cast as a writer from the North East that is essentially a fish out of water. Kevin Spacey is perfectly cast as Jim Williams. He looks eerily similar to the real person. It is impossible to watch Spacey in this role without thinking of the horrible revelations about his personal life that have come forward in the last couple years. He was an excellent actor, and it is a shame that he hurt so many people. Alison Eastwood is enjoyable in the film. Jack Thompson is fantastic as Jim’s legal aide and proud owner of the Georgia Bulldog’s mascot UGA IV. Jude Law is a good actor, but I think the film would have benefitted from casting an actual Southerner for the role of Billy Hanson. Jude never quite looks the part despite his best intentions.

Clint Eastwood directed the film well with a good eye for showing the iconic locations of the book. Luckily, everything that was described in the novel was still present a few years later when filming began, which gives the film a unique historical significance for fans of the book. Eastwood for the most part draws good performances from his actors and aside from a few missteps the film comes together pretty well. I think that this is a film that should please people that have not read the book, because the central story is great. Now that nearly twenty five years have passed, I think fans of the book will find the film adaptation is better than they remember. It is certainly not an absolute success, but it is much better than some of the more jaded reviewers have said. I liked it.

Video

Warner have done a solid job on the transfer of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil using an MPEG-4 AVC codec in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. Cinematographer Jack Green had worked with Clint Eastwood on many of his films including Unforgiven and Bird. He has a solid eye for the surroundings in Savannah, although a few scenes fall strangely flat (most notably in the cemetery which does not feel as ominous as one would expect.) Fine detail is for the most part very good, although some softness creeps in occasionally. There are no notable print issues. Fans will be pleased to have the film in this format.

Audio

Warner has provided a very capable DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that capably replicates the original sound design of the film. The movie features an enjoyable score by Lennie Niehause which fits the film pretty well. There is one sequence where I thought the score went too far, and that was when the dissolve of Jude Law’s character appears. When you see it, you will understand what I am talking about. This film is largely driven by dialogue, but the surround helps the party sequences to sound lively and immersive. This is another quality track from Warner Archive.

Supplements:

• The Real People in the Garden – Author John Berendt introduces this featurette, which features interviews with several of the real people depicted in the film.
• Theatrical Trailer

Overall Scores:

Video – 4/5

Audio – 4.5/5

Supplements – 2.5/5

Overall – 4/5

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil suffers from having such a rich and evocative book to adapt. The prose from the novel has an air of mystery and the supernatural that does not translate easily to the screen. It is not for lack of trying. The cast is well appointed and the settings are largely the actual places featured in the book. The script has a few scenes that could have been cut entirely for a stronger picture, but largely the picture brings the story to life well. Clint Eastwood directs the film well aside from a few scenes that seem unnecessary. Warner Archive’s new Blu-ray features a great looking video transfer and solid audio. The sole special feature is interesting and worthwhile. Fans of the film will be glad to have the film in high definition, and first time viewers may be advised to rent prior to a purchase due to the divisive critical reception of the film itself.