CONVERSATIONS WITH A CUPBOARD MAN

CONVERSATIONS WITH A CUPBAORD MAN is a strange yet compelling film about loneliness and isloation, and their effects. Charles is not a particularly fragile boy, but his mother guards him jealously, keeping him away from school and other children. She feeds him, washes him, and is his only companion. For the first 20 of his llife, he stays in thier small apartment, and spends most of his time in an attic closet. One day, his mother meets a man. Suddenly, Charles becomes an impediment to her new life, and so she sets him free. To Charles, who has never bought anything in a store, taken a bus, or even talked to a stranger, his new-found freedom is bewildering and frightening. Inherently intelligent but without a single social skill or even an idea of what is necessary to stay alive, Charles is lost in the streets. The film observes in fine detail his refuge. With its muted colors and claustrophobic decor, this adaptation of Ian McEwan's short story has unusual grace and appeal. In Polish with English subtitiles.