Young Adam

Well-shot and well-acted, this film unfolds depths of odiousness in its main character, and then lets him escape judgment, so it will never be a crowd-pleaser. But it is flavorful, even if the aftertaste is bitter. David Mackenzie’s film is mostly set on a barge plying the canals between Glasgow and Edinburgh in the 1950s, so the visual comparison to Jean Vigo’s L’Atalante is inevitable, though the contrast in tone and outlook is striking. Ewan McGregor has enough innate appeal to make his success with woman plausible, but also to keep the audience on his side until it has to turn away in revulsion. Tilda Swinton and Emily Mortimer are two he woos and wounds. The film works as a highly sexy mood piece with starkly beautiful -- though down and dirty -- visuals, but it’s convoluted unfolding of the central mystery and unmasking of the amoral protagonist are likely to alienate many. (2002, dvd, n.) *6* (MC-63.)