Safe is a 1995 American psychological drama film written and directed by Todd Haynes. The film stars Julianne Moore, Peter Friedman, Xander Berkeley, and James LeGros. Set in Los Angeles in 1987, it follows Carol White (Moore), a suburban housewife whose monotonous life abruptly changes when she becomes sick with a mysterious illness which she believes is caused by the environment around her. Principal photography began in Los Angeles on January 3, 1994, and concluded on February 13. Safe premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 1995, and was theatrically released in the United States on June 30. Despite underperforming commercially, the film received critical acclaim, with particular praise for Moore's performance. It received four nominations at the 11th Independent Spirit Awards, Best Feature, Best Female Lead for Moore, and Best Director and Best Screenplay for Haynes. Safe topped the "best film of the 1990s" poll by The Village Voice, and was described by critics as "the scariest film of the year", "a mesmerizing horror movie", and "a work of feminist counter-cinema". In 2015, Haynes said that the themes explored throughout the film, disease and immunity in a post-industrial landscape and how recovery is a burden often placed on victims of illness, were even more relevant than they were at the time of its release.
Plot In 1987, Carol White is a housewife living in an affluent suburb of Los Angeles with her husband Greg and stepson Rory. She spends her days gardening, doing aerobics, and meeting friends. Her marriage and family life appear stable but sterile, and her friends are polite but distant. After the family's home is renovated, Carol begins experiencing physical symptoms in everyday situations: She coughs uncontrollably when exposed to exhaust fumes from a nearby truck while driving, suffers a panic attack at a baby shower, and has a nosebleed while getting a perm at a hair salon. As her symptoms worsen, she becomes convinced that they are triggered by exposure to chemicals. Finally, she collapses while at her dry cleaners, which is being fumigated with pesticides. Doctors are unable to diagnose or treat Carol and state that she is physically healthy. She attends psychotherapy sessions, but her symptoms do not improve. She finds herself very alone with her condition, as her community remains indifferent to her suffering. While hospitalized, Carol watches an advertisement for Wrenwood, a new-age desert community for people with "environmental illnesses." The commune is led by Peter Dunning, an author who encourages residents to use self-help techniques. Realizing that she can no longer function in her current life, she leaves everything behind and moves to Wrenwood. Even in a community of people who are friendly towards her and suffer from similar health problems, Carol becomes increasingly isolated despite claiming that she is getting better. Lesions appear on her face and she increasingly relies on an oxygen tank. Eventually, she moves into an insulated dome separated from the rest of the community. There, as a "treatment" suggested by others in the commune, she looks into a mirror and repeats, "I love you" to herself.
Cast
Production Haynes first heard about "environmental illness" in 1991 on a TV magazine program that referred to it as "20th Century Disease". He and producer Vachon interviewed organizations that advocate for people who have environmental illness, such as Response Team for the Chemically Injured in Atascadero, California and The Chemical Connection in Wimberley, Texas. The monologue that Carol gives during her birthday party was based on transcripts of one of the interviews from Wimberley. Haynes also did research into New Age healing practices, and was especially interested in the work of Louise Hay, whose books became popular among gay men during the AIDS epidemic by telling them that self-love would heal their illness. The fictional Wrenwood was inspired by a yoga retreat at Kripalu Center. Haynes also drew inspiration from films such as Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. For the script, Haynes has said that the conceptual origin involved setting up barriers that prevent the audience from getting emotionally close to the character of Carol, which was a concept he explored again in Far from Heaven. He used political red herrings to make the audience trust certain characters at first, such as the leader of Wrenwood being a gay man. Since Haynes himself is gay, he thought the audience would expect the gay character to be trustworthy. For the role of Carol, Haynes was initially interested in Susan Norman—who was later cast as Linda instead—but Julianne Moore's agent reached out to Vachon and insisted on an interview with her for the role. Moore knew exactly how to play the character of Carol as soon as she read the script: "I wanted the character to not put any weight on her larynx at all", so that's what she did in the audition that won her the part. Cinematographer Alex Nepomniaschy suggested the look of Red Desert to Haynes after reading the script, and together they decided never to let the camera get very close to any of the characters as a way to keep emotional distance. Potential investors wanted him to replicate the elements that had worked well in Haynes' previous film Poison, but since this film was different in so many ways, it took a long time to find the funding for it. The budget was around $1 million. Finally, filming began on January 1, 1994, in Los Angeles, and lasted 6 weeks. For the film's premiere at Sundance, Haynes had removed the shot of Peter's mansion, but put it back in after hearing audience feedback because he wanted to emphasize Peter's hypocrisy. Ultimately, the film presents no answer for her illness or predicament. Her condition is given no name in the film, but director Haynes confirmed that it is a depiction of multiple chemical sensitivity. He also said that Carol's isolation was both the answer and the problem for her.
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