Dreary but seductive 'Lolita'

Dominique Swain and Jeremy Irons star in "Lolita," now playing at the Sacramento Inn.

BY PHILLIP L. SUBLETT
HORNET STAFF WRITER
Published October 14, 1998

"Lolita," director Adrian Lyne's adaptation of the Vladimir Nabokov novel, is a slow, meandering journey through the thoughts and emotions of a number of unsympathetic, tragic characters.

Jeremy Irons stars as Humbert Humbert, a professor of French literature who travels from Europe to a small New England town to take a teaching position.

As a teen-ager, Humbert was deeply in love with a girl who died of typhus, leaving a permanent scar in his psyche.

Now an adult, Humbert rents a room in a house owned by widow Charlotte Haze (Melanie Griffith). When he sees Charlotte's young daughter Dolores, he is immediately infatuated with her childlike innocence, adolescent beauty and independent spirit.

After Charlotte sends her rebellious daughter to summer camp, Humbert marries the widow so he can stay close to the girl. In order to avoid his husbandly duties, he slips Charlotte a sleeping pill every night before going to bed.

When Charlotte is killed in a car accident, Humbert takes custody of Dolores, whom he calls "Lolita." Together they travel across the country, and eventually he takes a teaching post at a boarding school.

Lolita is simultaneously childish and mature for her age. She is attracted to older men, just as Humbert is attracted to her.

Lolita is alternately a petulant child and a seductive young woman, whichever she needs to get what she wants. When she wants a raise in her allowance, she uses her feminine allure to manipulate Humbert.

Eventually they become bored with their life at the boarding school, so Humbert and Lolita pack up the car and travel across the country again.

Guilt and paranoia gradually begin to eat away at Humbert's sanity, and he starts thinking that every car he spots in the rearview mirror is following them.

The film's plot is a slow descent into tragedy, loss and despair. None of the characters have any redeeming values, nor do any of them learn a moral lesson.

Lyne is no stranger to controversial subject matter, having directed "Fatal Attraction" and "Disclosure," and "Lolita" definitely fits in this category.

The movie is a disturbing depiction of pedophilia, although Lolita is hardly an innocent victim, and it could be argued that she is the one who takes advantage of Humbert.

Soft, muted colors pervade the film, and the subtle score by veteran composer Ennio Morricone ("Bugsy," "Disclosure") captures and enhances "Lolita's" melancholy mood.

The performances of the cast stand out in an otherwise dreary, depressing story. Irons ably conveys the childlike fragility of Humbert, more a victim than a villain.

As the title character, Dominique Swain (John Travolta's daughter in "Face/Off") easily switches between a carefree child and a disturbingly mature seductress.

Though only some passionate kissing is depicted, Swain expresses her intimate relationship with Humbert through her eyes far more effectively than any explicit sex scene would.

Frank Langella also provides a brief but memorable performance as Clare Quilty, a depraved "connoisseur" of young girls who is Humbert's rival for Lolita's affections.

Though the story is plodding and depressing, "Lolita" is a fascinating character study with dark and troubling undertones. The movie earns three out of five stars.

• Visit the "Lolita" Web site.