Solid Geometry (film)
Encyclopedia
Solid Geometry is a 2002
short TV film directed by Denis Lawson
, starring Ewan McGregor
and Ruth Millar
. It is based on a short story by Ian McEwan
published in collection First Love, Last Rites
.
contained in the diaries and is fascinated by the theory of "a plane without a surface." His pursuit of this mythical geometric concept tears his marriage apart. The film is interspersed with flashbacks showing Phil's great-great grandfather discovering the same mysteries of the supernatural side of geometry as Phil is uncovering by reading the diaries.
Eventually Phil follows the instructions buried in the diaries and begins carefully folding a large sheet of paper in on itself like a lotus flower, then the folded paper emits a bright light, folds over itself and disappears. On seeing this, he dedicated his life to understanding more about the diaries and his great-great grandfather's mysterious disappearance.
He goes on to become obsessed with this transformation and the discussion in the book which links it to 'sexual intercourse positions' of which the diary claims there are only 17. After a love-making session with his wife, he proceeds to place another of the paper lotus flowers in the center of her curled body. As she curls into a foetal position unknowingly around the paper flower, she somehow completes the flower folding as had previously been achieved with just the paper. She spins around the paper flower several times and disappears, omitting tones of shock and fear. The film ends with Phil alone in bed.
2002 in film
The year 2002 in film involved some significant events. The first significant releases of sequels took place between The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Men in Black II, Analyze That, Spy Kids 2: The Island of...
short TV film directed by Denis Lawson
Denis Lawson
Denis Stamper Lawson is a Scottish actor and director. He is known for his roles as John Jarndyce in the BBC's adaptation of Bleak House and as Gordon Urquhart in the film Local Hero, but is best known for playing the part of Wedge Antilles in the original Star Wars trilogy.-Early life:Lawson was...
, starring Ewan McGregor
Ewan McGregor
Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...
and Ruth Millar
Ruth Millar
Ruth Laura Millar is a Scottish actress.-Early years:She spent her early years in Glasgow before attending Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design where she graduated with a degree in fine art in 1996. After leaving art school Millar formed Wee Lassie Productions, a production company that...
. It is based on a short story by Ian McEwan
Ian McEwan
Ian Russell McEwan CBE, FRSA, FRSL is a British novelist and screenwriter, and one of Britain's most highly regarded writers. In 2008, The Times named him among their list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945"....
published in collection First Love, Last Rites
First Love, Last Rites
First Love, Last Rites is a collection of short stories by Ian McEwan. It was first published in 1975 by Jonathan Cape and re-issued in 1997 by Vintage.- Context :...
.
Plot summary
Phil (McGregor) is a successful advertising executive and Maisie (Millar) is his young and hedonistic wife, but their lives are thrown into turmoil when Phil inherits his great-great grandfather's secret diaries. He becomes obsessed with research into solid geometrySolid geometry
In mathematics, solid geometry was the traditional name for the geometry of three-dimensional Euclidean space — for practical purposes the kind of space we live in. It was developed following the development of plane geometry...
contained in the diaries and is fascinated by the theory of "a plane without a surface." His pursuit of this mythical geometric concept tears his marriage apart. The film is interspersed with flashbacks showing Phil's great-great grandfather discovering the same mysteries of the supernatural side of geometry as Phil is uncovering by reading the diaries.
Eventually Phil follows the instructions buried in the diaries and begins carefully folding a large sheet of paper in on itself like a lotus flower, then the folded paper emits a bright light, folds over itself and disappears. On seeing this, he dedicated his life to understanding more about the diaries and his great-great grandfather's mysterious disappearance.
He goes on to become obsessed with this transformation and the discussion in the book which links it to 'sexual intercourse positions' of which the diary claims there are only 17. After a love-making session with his wife, he proceeds to place another of the paper lotus flowers in the center of her curled body. As she curls into a foetal position unknowingly around the paper flower, she somehow completes the flower folding as had previously been achieved with just the paper. She spins around the paper flower several times and disappears, omitting tones of shock and fear. The film ends with Phil alone in bed.