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Nicholas de Jongh's rating
, Riflemind gets on reunion bandwagon
By
Nicholas de Jongh
19 Sep 2008
Andrew Upton’s aggressively dull though gracefully acted play aspires to interest us in the question of whether a fictitious, once-famous band, Riflemind, will reunite after 20 years untogether.
The band members arrive by helicopter at the sumptuous country home of the front-man who deserted, John Hanna’s chronically glum John, one Saturday morning.
It makes for a very grim weekend.We would like to make our excuses and leave. It is not that happy a time for them either. Nothing much happens at length, aside from the band’s off-stage session, playing together. Little alcohol flows.
There is no insight into the mind and psychology of men who find fame in bands and how they survive after losing it. Upton offers desultory talk of a rambling sort on which we would like to turn our backs and minds.
“LA’s good. I like LA. Good scene. Young. I’m workin’. Partyin’. Scopin’ ladies,” says the dim drummer Moon.
The fatuous manager Sam, when not successfully heading into the pants of Cindy, girlfriend to John’s brother Phil, turns philosophical. “People change, they get older, they lose their fire. Life? It’s just lots and lots of little things.”
There are minor flurries of animosity but only about how to share the loot if the band re-forms and over who wrote what and how: when John is finally faced with the question of returning to the band, he resolves the issue at an undramatic stroke.
The sole flickers of drama relate to Lynn, John’s tea- and yoga-obsessed girlfriend, who returns that weekend to the bottle and heroin after long-time abstinence. Her confession of guilt, distress and yearning is painfully articulated by Susan Prior’s affecting Lynn.
Astutely asked in the programme about what prompted him to centre his plot on this unpromising subject, Upton retorts that ageing is a “massive threat” in the rock world; that bands like Riflemind capture “the spirit of an age” and would feel “captives of that time”. Yet nobody in Riflemind sounds like a captive, evokes a time, or sounds age-threatened.
Philip Seymour Hoffman’s elegant production coaxes performances of rare naturalness, ease and emotional spontaneity from a valiant cast, among whom Paul Hilton’s angrily bereft, heroin-taking Phil, Jeremy Sims’s vacuous Phil and Steve Rodgers’s blundering Moon are outstanding. At least Riflemind does have one exciting,valuable aspect. It inaugurates an exchange programme between Sydney Theatre Company, New York’s Labyrinth Theatre and Trafalgar Studios.
Until 3 January (0870 060 6632, www.theambassadors.com/trafalgarstudios).
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Reader views (13)
It's a murderously unoriginal and pale premise to draw life from. I think if Patrick Marber, or, better, Mamet, were to tackle it he would put some kind heavy duty twist on the story: Say, a Key Largo-type setting where "Riflemind" were held hostage in a diner with twits, French tourists, a damsel in distress, one overly sensitive poet - and for real theatrical guts: Humphry Bogart's ghost (Thanks, Woody).
- Tom, Bath, 03/08/2009 23:23
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I agree, this is a great play. I thought it definitely deserved better reviews. It's a real shame it's not running longer, so hopefully some people find this post and go see it this week.
So here's my review, I hope it doesn't sound too pompous!
The plot and dialogue are intense, realistic and well-executed. The set was great. Every actor was strong. You really feel like you're there, there were even points where I wanted to reach out and console them! There's loads of complexity between the characters, with subtle and not-so-subtle revelations all the way through. If you know any musicians, you'll recognise the characters and egos, and appreciate the themes.
I'm really critical of false and expository dialogue, and in my opinion, the dialogue was natural and witty. And there's a lot of very clever self-reference and dark humour written into it.
By the end, you can feel the exhaustion of all the characters. And I think that's where its faults lie. It's so intense and so real, after 2 and half hours, it rubs off and you feel a bit consumed.
It's directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman, so that was what I was expecting. He's got an amazing range, like Ben Kingsley, and is really good at corrupted but likeable characters. Like other plays directed by strong actors, the characters and dialogue are spot on. In this respect, if you like films directed by George Clooney, Richard Attenborough or Clint Eastwood, you'll like this play.
- Salim, London, UK., 23/10/2008 20:36
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I thought that Riflemind was awful. It seemed to last forever. There were some good performances however, John Hanna as John and Steve Rodgers as Moon in particular. They were not enough to lift my spirits though. About a third if the audience left during the interval. The highlight for me was Boris Becker sitting in the row behind me.
- Steve, Broxbourne, England, 22/10/2008 12:41
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I cannot believe the critics saw the same play I did. I thought the writing was well worth my time and attention. I am not, nor ever have been, an alcoholic or drug addict – yet I can imagine now just how it might feel, having heard Lynn’s soliloquy – and that is a result of sublime writing and a movingly honest performance by Susan Prior. Glad I saw it.
- Bob Gilchrist, Lewes, UK, 19/10/2008 16:23
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The critic’s verdict is unanimous. This is a boring, unimportant play. The Evening Standard readers agree. What is there more to say?
Well let me offer this alternative view. Riflemind is a play about a rock band that dares to take is subject matter seriously. This play has as much drama as any Chekhovian play (Upton has indeed adapted many Russian classics and seems to have learnt much from them). When we first encounter the lead member of the band, John (played by John Hannah), he is composing what seems to be a fairly straightforward rock song about leaving someone. We then see him talking to his girlfriend, Lynn and sense that all is not well with the couple. John talks about how tea can tan the inside of the gut, leaving it preserved like a fossil. This image which at first seems to be a piece of writer’s indulgence is actually key to the whole play. Riflemind is a band that once had its time in the limelight, at the peak of youth, and is now trying to get back to that glorious, unreachable past. As the play unfolds, Upton turns this story into a wonderful, subtle metaphor for the human condition. This is essentially a family drama (in the mould of the great Russian plays) set in the rock world. I suspect the play will have a second life and critics (who are more often than not slow on the uptake) will eventually see all the subtleties of its composition and take it seriously.
- You_Are_All_Wrong, Reykjavik, Iceland, 11/10/2008 13:17
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Within 2 minutes of it opening I was bored rigid and dreading what lay ahead, and it felt like everybody else did too. The acting was as good as you could get with such an appalling script and zero plot.
The main problem was that the characters were so weak and unbelievable that as an audience you really didn't care what happened to anybody (Actually nothing much did anyway).
25% of the audience left at the interval and everyone we spoke to was thinking of doing the same thing. I only clapped for the sake of the actors. Poor things.
The best thing about it was the helicopter sound effects....which doesn't say a lot!
- Cowley, london, 11/10/2008 08:46
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Not surprised at the negative reviews here.
From the very start when John Hannah's character enters the stage in semi darkness repeating some dialogue to himself while playing air guitar for what seemed an age, I thought oh lordy, it's going to be a long evening. I wasn't wrong.
Cliched, angst ridden and just a thoroughly miserable, boring play. If you want cheering up then give this the swerve.
- Graham, London, 01/10/2008 10:01
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Sadly I saw Riflemind in the same week as the excellent and thought provoking '6 Characters'. Unlike the dozen or so people around me who bolted for the exit at half time I stayed for the whole tedious event. It was voted a miss in every way from my juke box jury of six ticket holders.
- Steve Lovering, London, 29/09/2008 12:07
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A rock and roll band holed up in a country house - cue debauchery, fun, madness and music - or in this case, not. Here was two hours of tedious, drab dialogue clearly written by someone who has clearly not been within a million miles of a rock and roll band or debauchery for that matter. Bland electric guitar strumming interspersed the scene changes which served to show that this particular band of bores never bore any relation whatsoever to any sort of rock band known to man. Stick to opera mate!
- Martin, London, UK, 25/09/2008 16:37
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Well thank god there was an intermission, so that those with some sort of brain could retire hurt and go home. What a lot of drivel, could not empathise with one character, wish they had all done an Ivanov at half time and finished it early.
- Howard, London, 24/09/2008 21:55
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I agree, there are some lovely touches from the cast. I thought both female actors gave very strong performances and I also think John Hannah did the best he could to liven up some of the most self indulgent writing I have ever seen. By the end I didn't care what happened to any of the characters- just as long as I didn't have to see, or hear about them! A real shame, as I enjoyed Hoffman's direction and would really like to see more of his work staged in the West End.
- Alexandra, London, UK, 24/09/2008 19:34
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Agree with the review here. I thought about not bothering for the second act but decided to stay. I just found it very tedious and I didn't care for any of the characters. Can't really fault the acting but was willing it to end quick. There were one or two light moments that raised a smile but mostly it was a dirge. I suppose this is what it might be like for real bands but as a subject matter it left me cold.
- Graham, London UK, 23/09/2008 09:02
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I completely agree. We nearly felt asleep and couldn't decide whether to come back for the second act. The highlight of our evening was seeing Philip Seymour Hoffman watching from few rows above us. He's lovely and we wished it was him on stage, though in a different play as I don't believe even his presence would make much difference to this bland play.
- Michaela, London, UK, 19/09/2008 12:00
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