The shape of things

Writer-director Neil LaBute In the Company of Men litters the screen with brutal human relationships that have the same dubious allure as a car wreck. Here, he adapts his play about the nature of art, the art of manipulation and sudden betrayal into a grim and cynical but ultimately arresting exploration of personal expression and modern love. Paul Rudd stars as nerdish college student Adam, who is sucked into the life of an art-theory major named Evelyn (Rachel Weisz). Their opposites-attract relationship takes on an ominous subtext as Evelyn lures her new beau into a complete makeover, much to the concern of Adam’s best friend (Frederick Weller) and fiancée (Gretchen Mol). The film’s continuous flow of dialogue is intense though stretched somewhat thin in spots.