The Adjuster is a 1991 Canadian drama film directed by Atom Egoyan, his fourth feature film and the first to achieve international acclaim.[2] The film won five awards, as well as two other nominations upon its initial release.[3]
Plot
Insurance adjuster Noah Render lives with his film-censor wife Hera in a barren, unfinished suburban development. He spends his time rescuing clients of his company whose homes have burned down. His methods are unorthodox. He puts them all up in the same motel, visits them frequently, sleeps with some of them (men as well as women) and forever quotes his mantra: "You may not know it yet, but you're in shock." His wife also subverts her responsibilities, bringing home steamy film clips to share with her reclusive sister.
A parallel plot involves a wealthy and bored couple, Bubba and Mimi, who seek sexual adventure. On the pretext of shooting a film, probably pornographic, they rent Noah's isolated house and he moves his family to join his clients in the motel. Returning late one night, he finds his family gone and assumes that they have returned home. Rushing there, he finds his house is burning down.
This film is one of Atom Egoyan's most strangely compelling creations. His effective use of wide-screen cinematography portrays the terrifying abyss that separates Noah from everyone he encounters.[4] Egoyan based the film on a true story in 1989, when a fire burned down his parents' home. He realized how strange it could be for victims of a house fire to be emotionally dependent on insurance workers, which led to the inspiration for the project.[5]
Egoyan promoted a book named after the same title as his film, The Adjuster, at a launch in Ottawa. It is a film analysis written by Tom McSorley, a head of the Canadian Film Institute. This book is part of an examination of Canadian cinema, in a series for the University of Toronto Press. The author goes into intricate depth about The Adjuster as he traces the genesis, production, and reception of the film.[6] McSorley claims that it is a watershed film.