The Spectacular Now

Breaking the Mold
by Mark Dispenza

The Spectacular Now reinvents the teen coming-of-age film with a harder look at the challenges faced by today's youth.

Sutter (Miles Teller) is the class clown who perpetually lives in the moment. His actions are dictated entirely by what feels good to him at the time, without thought of possible consequences further down the road. He thinks he has it all, until his beautiful girlfriend (Brie Larson) dumps him because she sees that he has no future. She trades him in for the class president and star athlete. Getting dumped is a shock to Sutter. After all, he's a funny party guy who loves everybody, and everybody is supposed to love him back. It doesn't help that he's also an alcoholic.

Miles Teller

Aimee (Shailene Woodley) is the good girl who does think about her future, but she feels trapped by her mother, who has been emotionally despondent and helpless since her father died several years back. In direct contrast to Miles, who eschews any responsibility, Aimee has more than her fair share.

After Sutter is dumped he goes on a drinking binge and passes out on a lawn, where Aimee finds him while delivering newspapers on the route her mother is supposed to be covering. The unlikely pair begin to see more of each other, and because each has what the other needs, a close bond develops, much to everyone else's surprise.

Shailene Woodley

Sutter's relationship with Aimee also awakens in him a desire to discover who he really is, and that involves tracking down the father who deserted his family and hasn't contacted them since. Sutter's mother (Jennifer Jason Leigh) has always avoided talking about her ex-husband and won't tell Sutter how to find him. When Sutter does find him, he'll discover it's like looking in a mirror, and he'll be terrified by what he sees.

The screenplay written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, from the novel by Tim Tharp, is a brilliant exploration of how parents influence us, even in their absence. It's also a young man's cathartic journey to discover the past that molded him and face the choice to make himself a better and more responsible human being.

Director James Ponsoldt (Smashed) gets a lot of the credit for creating the canvas that allows two fine young actors to excel in their roles. Teller and Woodley are called upon to portray a wide range of emotion, often expressing state of mind with little more than facial expression. It is a near-certainty that both will come off of this film with considerabe acclaim, much as already happened with Woodley following her turn in The Descendants.

It's little wonder that The Spectacular Now has generated such positive buzz among critics and was an audience favorite at its Sundance Film Festival debut.

 

 

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Blue Jasmine

The Harder They Fall                        

by Mark Dispenza

Woody Allen's latest film is short on laughs and long on social commentary. A departure from Allen's usual shtick, Blue Jasmine is a well-constructed character study of a socialite's fall from grace.  

I haven't heard it yet, but I won't be surprised if Cate Blanchett's performance as Jasmine generates an Academy Award nomination.  Perhaps this late summer release date was targeted to bolster her chances.  It it comes to pass, it will be an honor she richly deserves.

Jasmine is a Hamptons housewife-type whose life has been shattered by the arrest, conviction and suicide of her once super-wealthy husband, Hal (Alec Baldwin).  The problem was that Hal's wealth was built upon a giant ponzi scheme that netted many victims over the years he kept it afloat with creative financial and legal maneuverings.

Among the victims were Jasmine's sister, Ginger (Sally Hawkins) and her now ex-husband, Augie (Andrew Dice Clay).  Ginger  did not share her sister's financial good fortune in marriage.  She barely gets by as a checker in a neighborhood grocery store.  Augie is a small contractor who came into good luck after he acquired a winning lottery ticket.  Unfortunately Jasmine and Ginger talked him into investing the money with Hal, rather than pursuing his dream of starting his own business.  

Sally Hawkins and Andrew Dice Clay

After years of avoiding contact with her working class sister, Jasmine, now financially destitute and recently released from a psychiatric hospital, is forced to seek her assistance to survive.  But Jasmine can't accept her new poverty, and she spends much of her energy seeking out creative ways to restore her life of privilege, whether through her own entrepreneurial efforts or by marrying back into it.

As the story unfolds both in real-time and in flashback, it becomes apparent that Jasmine is an expert at looking the other way.  Although she professes to be yet another victim of her husband's deception, she is not the air-headed socialite she affects.  It was her choice to turn a blind eye as evidence mounted of Hal's financial machinations and his serial betrayal of their marriage.  

Cate Blanchett and Alec Baldwin

Intentional or not, Allen has created a powerful parable of how the blind pursuit of wealth for its own sake corrupts the soul and destroys all it touches.  Although in many ways, Allen's script comes across as a European intellectual's smug parable about the demise of American privilege in the world, and good riddance to its exploitative origins and corrupting influence, it would be a mistake to dismiss the film so readily.

This is easily Allen's smartest and most serious work to-date.  Whether or not you agree with the film's pessimistic tone, it is an insightful view into the nature of the wealth-obsessed.  Despite Hal and Jasmine's generous support of charities, nothing they do will make up for the evil upon which they built their ultimately fragile opulence.

Jasmine is toxic to everyone she comes in contact with.  Despite Ginger's humble life she is happy and fulfilled.  That changes every time Jasmine attempts to remake her in her own image.  The scorecard for Jasmine's interference is a failed marriage, a lost nest egg and the disruption of Ginger's new relationship with grease monkey, Chili, played by Bobby Cannavale in one of the film's most entertaining performances.

Self-deception is Jasmine's greatest forte.  The illusions upon which she based her life are fracturing, and so is Jasmine's mind.  She dulls the pain with alcohol, but there will never be enough booze or money to repair what is broken inside of her.  

Cate Blanchett

Blanchett's performance is a key component of what makes the film work.  Although it's easy to loathe her superficial values and condescending dismissal of working class people, Blanchett somehow manages to convey the psychological underpinnings of fear and vulnerability that drive Jasmine.  In spite of everything she's done, it's hard not to feel sorry for her and hope that somehow she gets her values straight and her life back in order.

Allen doesn't hold much hope for that.  

I Give It a Year

Sometimes It's Better to Wait             
by Mark Dispenza

I Give It a Year is a romantic comedy that breaks the mold.  We've all seen it in real life.  A close friend or family member falls madly in love with a partner who is obviously - to everyone else - ill-suited.

It reminds me in tone of my favorite anti-romantic comedy, 500 Days of Summer, although I believe the latter to be the better film.  The humor from writer-director, Dan Mazer (Borat, Bruno) is hit and miss, but when it hits it's both hysterical and original.

Rafe Spall and Rose Byrne

Nat (Rose Byrne) marries Josh (Rafe Spall) after a whirlwind 7-month courtship. None of their friends and family see the match and go as far as to predict the union won't last beyond one year.  As the marriage progresses, and attractive rivals both old and new come into the picture, it becomes harder and harder for the two to remain faithful.

Nat meets Guy (Simon Baker of the TV series, The Mentalist), a new client at her firm, and the attraction is immediately both mutual and powerful.  Much of the comedy from that point on revolves around Nat's weakening resistance to Guy's aggressive romantic overtures, one of which involves the release of white doves in a private dining room at a swanky hotel.  The presence of a ceiling fan leads to unanticipated complications.

Josh is tempted by the return of old girlfriend, Chloe, played by the delightful Anna Faris (the Scary Movie franchise, The House Bunny).  In a classic case of bad timing, the two are forced to confront the lack of closure in their previous relationship and face their unresolved feelings of love.

Simon Baker and Anna Faris

Although I enjoyed actors, Byrne, Baker and Faris in their respective roles, I felt that Spall was miscast.  He is much too handsome and earnest-looking to successfully pull off a character with an inner idiot dying to get out.  It's not that he's a bad actor, it's just that he stretched the suspension of disbelief too many times in that particular role.  The experience was akin to watching Prince William attempt an impression of Jim Carey.

All in all, it's not a bad way to spend an evening if you are a fan of romantic comedy and British humor, with a twist of social farce.  The film is scheduled for a limited theatrical release later this month, but you can download it and watch it now with iTunes.

Drinking Buddies

Friendship and Sex                         
by Mark Dispenza

Drinking Buddies is a very different kind of buddy film.  A genre that goes back to the beginning of cinematic history, the buddy film has been done almost every imaginable way.

We've had buddy cop films and buddy comedies.  We've even had bromances.  Although most have been from the male perspective, recently we've seen women get their due in films like Bridesmaids and The Heat.  But rarely do the sexual lines cross, and when they do we get When Harry Met Sally, which fulfills the accepted wisdom of mainstream society.  Men and women can't really be just friends.

Drinking Buddies is scheduled for theatrical release on August 23 but is currently available for advance screening on VOD from iTunes.  It's a slow weekend for good indie films if you've already seen Fruitvale Station and The Way, Way Back, so I took the advice of an online reviewer and stayed home to download Drinking Buddies.

Olivia Wilde and Jake Johnson

Set at a craft brewery in Chicago, the story follows Kate (Olivia Wilde) and Luke (Jake Johnson), two coworkers who are inseparable, so close they can finish each other's sentences.  They eat lunch together; they tease each other relentlessly; they hang out with coworkers for a brew after work.

Kate is in a relationship with Chris (Ron Livingston). Luke is in the middle of a six-year relationship with Jill (Anna Kendrick), and the two are talking a lot more about marriage these days.  Although it's obvious that Kate and Luke care deeply about one another and are sensitive to the other's emotional states, they have never been intimate in the biblical sense of the term.

When Kate and Chris hit a relationship crisis, the sexual tension between Kate and Luke begins to heat up.  Her emotional state deteriorates, forcing a very concerned Luke to push the boundaries of intimacy to keep her from making stupid decisions, as she begins to take solace in drink and even casual sex with the boss.

Olivia Wilde and Ron Livingston

Drinking Buddies is billed as a romantic comedy, although I found it to be light on comedy.  The title of the film suggests slapstick or even raunchy laughs, but you won't find either here.  This is a definitely a fresh take on the buddy film genre, and it explores a subject that hasn't been addressed much at the movies - the concept that men and women can develop close friendships that don't lead to marriage or sexual intimacy.

I found the film to be on the light side in terms of entertainment, with the twist on the genre as the primary reason to recommend it.  It's definitely an actors' film, giving its cast ample opportunity to engage conversationally and emotionally, without the need to play against a green screen.  I feel that the film would have been more enjoyable if the filmmaker, Joe Swanberg, had written more effective dialogue for the cast instead of relying entirely on improvisation.  The lack of subtext in the actors' lines becomes apparent as the story unfolds.  This results in conversation that are just a cut above the uninteresting reality of on-the-nose dialogue, but not interesting enough to challenge the audience.

Jake Johnson and Anna Kendrick

Luke comes across as a man content with his life, and although he's certainly capable of making mistakes or letting his temper get the better of him, he's a level-headed sort who won't get into too much trouble.  On the other hand, it's clear from Kate's very first scene with boyfriend, Chris, that she hasn't found what she wants.  In fact she may be seeking escape from deep-seated emotional issues using alcohol and sex as enablers.  Her friendship with Luke may be the only thing keeping her grounded.

The accepted wisdom of society is that sex will always keep men and women from being true friends.  The apparent appeal of this film to younger reviewers may indicate that expectation is changing.  I've been fortunate to have very close female friends in my life, whom I love dearly and with whom I've never been sexually intimate.

I recognize that, like the friends of my own sex, there are mutual interests and viewpoints that connect us, but there are also differences that would lead to disaster if we crossed the line into the close quarters of day-to-day intimacy.  Sometimes addiction is the problem.  Sometimes we are temperamentally unsuited for prolonged regular contact, and sometimes we share a love of certain things but little interest or even patience with other interests.

The appeal of this film is a hopeful message that our capacity for love can grow to include a whole world beyond our own families and intimate partners.  In other words, love and friendship can be about more than just our own neediness and insecurity.

Fruitvale Station

A Life Unlived                               
by Mark Dispenza

Fruitvale Station is not your typical social justice film. Its message is not steeped in populist outrage, but is all the more effective in its subtle focus on promise unfulfilled.

Ryan Coogler could not have picked a better time to release his first feature, a story about a preventable tragedy that resulted from the escalation of violence.

Michael B. Jordan and Melonie Diaz

Michael B. Jordan (Chronicle) is stellar in his depiction of Oscar Grant, an unarmed 22-year-old man who was shot dead on New Year's Day 2009 by a Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer.  He and his friends were detained following a scuffle on one of the train cars.  Grant was unarmed and face-down on the ground when one of the officers inexplicably drew his pistol and fired a shot into the young man's back.  Doctors were unable to save him, and he died later that morning.

Witnesses on the packed commuter route recorded the scene on their cell phones, so there was never any question of what happened.  The officer later claimed that he intended to grab his Taser, but drew his gun by accident in the heat of the moment.  He was charged with first degree murder but convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served 11 months of a two-year sentence.

The public was outraged and the incident became a cause celebre for black activists and others who work in the cause of social justice.  It continues to resonate today.  Coogler's film concludes with footage from a vigil held this past year on the anniversary of the incident at the Fruitvale BART Station.

Octavia Spencer

Although the shooting incident is the climax of the film, the story shows little of its aftermath, especially the politics of it.  Instead it largely follows Grant for the 24 hours immediately preceding his death, treating the audience as voyeurs, witnesses who observe the action but are not led in any obvious direction.  I say "obvious" because this is not a documentary.  Coogler, who also wrote the script, has taken the liberties of a storyteller to frame Grant's life.  In using that approach he allows the audience to get to know Grant as a man, and not as anybody's political symbol.

The camera follows Grant as he alternately argues with and demonstrates his love for his girlfriend, his mother, his sister, his young daughter, and even his closest friends.  Octavia Spencer plays Grant's mother in a way that leaves no doubt she loves her son, even if she has to be tough on him at times. The audience is introduced to Grant as a man - imperfect, impetuous, temperamental, loyal, loving and struggling to make his way in a world that often stymies him.

Many of the best films have a scene in which the audience sees the hero in a  moment alone, safe from the intrusion and the judgement of others.  In that moment the hero's true character emerges.  There is such a moment in Fruitvale Station, when Grant encounters a stray dog.  The dog provides the opportunity to see Grant as he truly is, and it also serves as a metaphor for the tragedy to come.

Michael B. Jordan and Ariana Neal

Even though I watched the video of the incident at the Fruitvale BART Station, as did many others, I can't tell you what went on in the mind of the officer who shot Grant.  It's plausible that he did draw his pistol by mistake.  It's also plausible that in that moment, he reacted in the heat of his anger and fear, and whether consciously or not, he intended to fire that fatal shot.  Witnesses to the actual incident recalled his horror and emotional distress at the results of his action, as his rational mind caught up with his emotion.

And that brings us to the real cause of the tragedy.  Cool heads did not prevail on either side, and the incident was allowed to escalate until the unthinkable occurred.  The debate about the root cause of the tragedy will continue, with all sides claiming the exalted status of victim, and minds will become hardened and entrenched deeper in their opinions.

Each side will escalate and perpetuate the cycle of conflict, just as they do everywhere in the world today - nation against nation, race against race, religious sect against religious sect. We don't talk about the tragedy of what is being lost . Instead we selfishly seek status as the most aggrieved and then profess outrage when the others don't see it that way.

But when all is said and done, there is a hole in the world that Oscar Grant once occupied.  There is a daughter who will never again laugh and play and share secrets with her father.  There is a mother who lost her son, and there aren't many losses in this world equal to that.  Only a mother can cherish a child so deeply, despite all of the trials and tribulations he puts her trough.

There is a sister who will never again be able to depend on her brother to cover her own shortcomings, and a girlfriend who lost a cherished lover and will never know what happiness the future might have brought or what pain.

There are friends who will never again be able to count on him to have their back when times get rough, and there are strangers who will miss his everyday acts of kindness in days yet to come.

And that's the kind of conversation we should be having.

Europa Report

Into the Abyss                                  
by Mark Dispenza

With space exploration at low ebb in the USA, fans can reinvigorate the excitement of venturing into the unknown with Europa Report.

One of the few hard science fiction films to come along in recent years, Europa Report is a unique blend of science fiction with documentary-style filmmaking by Ecuadorian director Sebastian Cordero, a master of the contained psychological thriller.  The film was made by unabashed true believers in humankind's destiny to explore the universe and designed to appeal to fans of the films that inspired it, such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010 and The Abyss.

Cordero and his director of photography, Enrique Chediak (127 Hours), positioned eight cameras inside a spacecraft mock-up to create the illusion of witnessing the live feed from an actual space mission.  The effect brought me back in time to my childhood, watching Walter Cronkite's coverage of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon.

Daniel Wu and Anamaria Rinca

The story revolves around a private enterprise space mission by Europa Ventures to send humans to explore the vast liquid ocean below the thick ice of Jupiter's large moon, Europa.  They hypothesize that there is some type of rudimentary life to be discovered there and assemble a crack team of the best astronauts from around the world to pull it off.

The mission is a long shot and fraught with peril, as once the crew covers the vast distance to Europa and achieve orbit, they will be called upon to land on top of the ice and drill beneath it to detect what is hidden below.

The dangers are obvious and the story doesn't miss any of them, borrowing a little too heavily from the films it pays tribute to, namely 2001, 2010 and even The Abyss, the latter of which doubtless inspired the edge-of-the-seat tension through much of the film.  

The lack of originality was my biggest problem with the story, but it was not enough to preclude my enjoyment of it or appreciation of its cinema verite approach to narrative.  I'm one of those space exploration fans who grew up with Star Trek, and with Hollywood going off the deep end of pushing the action and special effects envelope, I enjoyed the illusion that I was witnessing something that could truly happen at some point in the future.

Writer Phil Gelatt did a lot of research to inject reality into the storyline, including interviews with NASA scientists and engineers.  "One of my favorite moments in pre-production came out of a conversation with Steve Vance at JPL," he said.  "I asked him if a manned mission to Europa was possible today, and he said, 'Yeah, just give me a couple billion dollars.'  It was a reminder that many of our limitations are simply about a lack of will."

One of the other things I loved about this film was its embrace of a positive future for humanity.  The media loves to go for the ratings these days by concentrating on stories about hatred and killing among different ethnic groups and nationalities. I don't think there was a single member of the crew on this spaceship from the same country, and yet there was no tension at all based on their differences.  In fact, I cannot recall a single line of dialogue addressing which country a character hailed from or tension arising from the crew's diversity.  This is a crack team, and they have each other's back.

It also didn't hurt that the cast was assembled from some of the best actors from around the world, including Sharlto Copley (District 9) and Embeth Davidtz (The Amazing Spider-man) of South Africa, Michael Nyqvist of Sweden (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Karolina Wydra of Poland (Crazy, Stupid, Love) and Romanian Anamaria Marinca (4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days) and Chinese-American Daniel Wu among others.

Europa Report is currently available in pre-release download from iTunes, and will be distributed theatrically beginning August 2. 

The Way, Way Back

Stuck in the Back Seat of Life               
by Zac Ryan

The Way, Way Back makes coming-of-age less traumatic and a whole lot more fun. 

Adults over a certain age may remember those old station wagons with the two front bucket seats and a row in the middle, and another row of seats in the back - the way back.  It's a spot typically relegated to the youngest member of the family, who is forced to sit facing the road behind him, seeing what has already passed, not what is yet to come.

When we first meet Duncan (Liam James), he's been relegated to the way back while his mother's (Toni Collette) new beau drives. Trent (Steve Carell) keeps a keen eye on Duncan, who doesn't make eye-contact with the man he loathes, the man who has stolen his mother's heart with his slimy used-car sales tactics. Trent thinks he's doing well, but when he asks Duncan how he would rate himself, "I don't know, a six", Trent quickly pipes back, "a three." It is crushing to be with a man who thinks so lowly of him. 

Steve Carell and Toni Collette

When the family arrives, they're quickly greeted by neighbor (and constantly tipsy), Betty (Allison Janney). She's got a mouth like a sailor and a sharp tongue that constantly berates her son and his lazy eye. She's an embarrassment to all who meet her, but she doesn't see it that way. This is her time away, and more importantly, she must host the best fourth of July party in town. While Betty tries pawning her visually-challenged son off on Duncan, he's more captivated by her blossoming daughter, Susanna (AnnaSophia Robb). Yet he keeps his eyes to the ground and doesn't make a move.

Soon Duncan finds his escape at the local water park. After sneaking in through the employee entrance, Duncan is befriended by Owen (Sam Rockwell), the manager and man-child of the establishment. He spins yarns about legends on the slides, flirts with Caitlin (Maya Rudolph), and never seems to do any work. But this is his home, a place for Owen and his friends to continue being children and never take responsibility in life  They return year-after-year and just can't move on to greener pastures. 

Liam James and AnnaSophia Robb

Owen takes a liking to Duncan and offers him his first job.  During his short tenure he quickly grows into his own personality. Duncan takes on his short-comings and his insecurities about girls, and finally makes moves, including standing up for himself and his mother.

The Way, Way Back isn't inventive and it feels familiar, sort of like the old station wagon, but it's the performances and connections that make this film a must-see.  Written by Oscar winners, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash (The Descendents) in their directorial debut, the film delivers a potent mixture of comedy and drama, never feeling heavy-handed or too light. Liam James delivers a wonderful lead performance, propped up by a wonderful ensemble cast. In the end, Duncan and company are not a six, but closer to a 9.