The Way Way Back

COMEDY/DRAMA

Bring the Heat, Bring the Noise

8.75 out of 10 | Matinee or Rental

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Rated: PG-13  Some sexual content, language, brief drug material and thematic elements
Release Date: July 5, 2013 (limited)
Runtime: 1 hour 43 minutes

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Director: Jim Rash, Nat Faxon
Writers: Jim Rash, Nat Faxon
Cast: Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, Amanda Peet, Toni Collette, AnnaSophia Robb, Maya Rudolph, Rob Corddry, Allison Janney, Liam James, Jim Rash, Nat Faxon, River Alexander, Ava Deluca-Verley

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SYNOPSIS:  Over the course of his summer break, a teenager comes into his own thanks in part to the friendship he strikes up with one of the park's managers.

REVIEW: Nat Faxon and Jim Rash moved from just comedians and actors with their breakout screenplay for George Clooney, The Descendants. Jim Rash is most recently known for his work as the Dean in NBC's Community, while Nat Faxon appeared in Bad Teacher and The Zookeeper. Now they write, direct and star in a film about a young man's coming of age in spite of external forces he can never hope to control.

14-year-old Duncan (Liam James, 2012) finds himself in the back of the vintage station wagon going to a summer beach house owned by his mother's boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World). Sitting in the far back seat, Duncan is the odd man out with his mother Pam (Toni Collette, Hitchcock) diverting attention to Trent. Once they get to the Ramsey summerhouse - called the Riptide - Duncan is even more an outsider when Trent's friends reconnect from previous summers. Duncan's mom joins in the fun and Duncan finds himself moping around wishing he was anywhere but there. After a few days Duncan bumps into Owen (Sam Rockwell, The Sitter), the manager of the local water park waterways, and finds the kinship to him. Taking a job at the water park Duncan diverts his problems to enjoyment of the summer job at the park, finding new friends and people to make his days worthwhile. Along the way Duncan finds a friend in Trent's neighbors daughter, makes friends at the water park, and find a new confidence that comes with the start of being a man.

The Way, Way Back can mean many things. Does it refer to Duncan's seat assignment at the far back bench of Trent's station wagon? Or is it a more metaphysical in defining how to find one's way back once you gone astray? At the very least The Way, Way Back is a coming-of-age story of a boy dealing with the destruction of his nuclear family and the turmoil that comes with a new one.

From Steve Carell's turn as a not so funny boyfriend, to Toni Collette reprising a familiar role as an uncertain mother to a young son, to Sam Rockwell scene-stealing with his juvenile antics, the cast is phenomenal. Liam James, playing Duncan, provides all the tell tale sign of an awkward boy who has to find it within himself to grow up a bit. With the addition of Amanda Peet, Rob Cordry, Allison Janney, and Mya Rudolph, the entire film works in wonderful concert. Even Mat Faxon and Jim Rash 'do good' with their more than cameo roles.

The Way, Way Back also captures the volatile teenage angst that seems so foreign to adults. But it also captures the uncertainties and poor judgements that adults make that seem so foreign to a teenager. Life is still so black and white for a young adult - the emotions so raw and intense, the decisions so difficult to come by but obvious and 'right' when made.

Life in a summer season town may seem like a two month paradise to those living on the outside, but it is an odyssey of awkwardness and self-discovery for the young, and a period of regret and the pursuit to recapture youth under the guise of too much drinking, smoking, and partying for adults. Decisions are made or made on our behalf at any age, providing a breeding ground for contempt, regret, and lost opportunities. Seize the day, wherever you are!

The Way, Way Back is a sweet, funny and serious look into the perils of new places, new people, and new family dynamics. The perfect tale for summer, this film will give you a reflection of wonders lost and wonders found.

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Liberal Arts

Knowledge is Sorrow

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Rated: NR
Release Date: September 14, 2012
Runtime:  1 hour 37 minutes

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Director: Josh Radnor
Writers: Josh Radnor
Cast:  Josh Radnor, Elizabeth Olsen, Richard Jenkins, Allison Janney, John Magaro, Zac Efron, Elizabeth Reaser

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SYNOPSIS:  When 30-something Jesse returns to his alma mater for a professor's retirement party, he falls for Zibby, a college student, and is faced with a powerful attraction that springs up between them.

REVIEW: Josh Radnor, star of the CBS hit comedy How I Met Your Mother, is becoming a renaissance man with forays into writing and director feature films. In 2010, Radnor surprised at the Sundance Film Festival with HappyThankyouMorePlease where he won the Audience Award and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. When he finished Liberal Arts and presented it at the festival, the film was snatched up for distribution. Does triple threat writer/director/actor John Radnor serve up another hit? Let's take a look.

Thirty-something college graduate Jesse (Josh Radnor, HappyThankYouMorePlease) works at the admissions office of a New York college, an avid reader of literature and graduate of an Ohio college with a liberal arts degree. When Professor Peter Hoberg (Richard Jenkins,The Cabins in the Woods) looks to retire at Jesse's alma mater, Jesse returns to his own campus and finds himself transcending to an earlier, more knowledge-hungry, care-free time of his life. While on campus, Jesse meets 19-year-old old soul Zibby (Elizabeth Olsen, Silent House) who captures his imagination. When Jesse returns to New York, he and Zibby stay connected through hand-written letters and a burned CD of classical music that Zibby found awakened a new awareness in her during her Music Survey course. Jesse and Lizzy realize that there was a strong attraction to each other and try to figure out what to do about it.

Because in much wisdom there is much grief, and increasing knowledge ... For in much wisdom is much grief; and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.
Ecclesiastes 1:18

Josh Radnor would be the first to tell you that he was working through something when he wrote the script for Liberal Arts. Looking to learn a lesson about the prospects of aging and of one's mortality, Radnor creates a story that is fueled from personal experience and personal growth. An alum of Kenyan College in real life, Radnor did take a real trip to his alma mater and realized that he had matured to a point where interactions with the younger generation still attending college would seem suspect.

Liberal Arts is a romantic dramedy in the best sense of the genre, the script following the trials and tribulations of Jesse by using several perspectives and opinions to light the way. Jesse interacts with the 'end of the road' Professor Peter Hoberg who wants to escape the prison that a few decades of working at the college has made it for him. During his wanderings through the campus, Jesse also encounters a young student Dean (John Magaro, The Box) who is both emotionally distant and a kindred spirit who enjoys the same book that shaped his own younger mind. Jesse can relate to both his own youth in the form of Dean, as well as his mounting fears that his second favorite college professor confides to him concerning his impending retirement.

Smartly written with poignant prose and dialogue, Radnor has mastered translating the written words into compelling dialogue. A perfect example of Radnor's craft coming to life can be encapsulated in a cafe bench debate between Jesse and Zibby over the pros and cons of 'Solar Sun, Lunar Moon', a campy vampire romance novel, and its place in literature. Is literature relegated to prose that compels and enriches, or is it something that you can enjoy just as fun? The conundrum that Jesse poses about literature in its totality is that 'literature is created to combat loneliness', but the more you read the less you exist in the real world.

Centered around the struggle of the yearnings of the idealized past, the drifting wayward existence of the the present, and the fears of an unknown future, Josh Radnor's story is made all the better with stellar performances by Radnor, the stunning and enthralling Elizabeth Olsen, and Richard Jenkins. Add in characters like a Romantic Literature Professor Judith Fairfield played with grace and diction by Allison Janney (The Help), a young spiritual guru Nat played without irony by Zac Efron (The Lucky One), young troubled student Dean played by John Magaro, and a wistful book store employee Ana played by Elizabeth Reaser (The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1) - plus the Ohio college campus as an Autumn oasis of enlightenment and higher learning - and you have a refreshing, intelligent film worth viewing.

Liberal Arts may be an independent film, but ranks high on the list of films with something to say and a beautiful way to say it. From the new perspectives found through a pair of headphones and a burned CD, to the lost art of hand-written letters, to the influences of the written word on the expectations of real life, Liberal Arts is measured by more than degrees. 

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WORTH:  Matinee or DVD

A Thousand Words

Life is a Journey

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Rated: PG-13 Sexual situations, language, dialogue and some drug-related humor.
Release Date: March 9, 2012
Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins

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Director:  Brian Robbins

Writers: Steve Koren
Cast:  Eddie Murphy, Kerry Washington, Cliff Curtis, Clark Duke, Allison Janney

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SYNOPSIS: Literary agent Jack McCall uses his bravado and big mouth to wheel and deal. After stretching the truth on a deal with a spiritual guide, Jack is confronted with the sudden appearance of a Bodhi tree on his property that drops a leaf with every word Jack utters.

REVIEW: Brian Robbins, a frequent directing force behind such Eddie Murphy films as Norbit and Meet Dave, teams up with longtime comedy writer Steve Koren known for Bruce Almighty, Click and A Night at the Roxbury for the latest Eddie Murphy off-beat comedy. This this outing, Eddie Murphy's character has "1000 words left to discover what matters most". I wonder if he will succeed before the last leaf falls?

Apogee literary agent Jack McCall (Eddie Murphy, Tower Heist) goes through life trying to land the big deals using fast talking and saying whatever he needs to. Living in a slick, glass bachelor pad with a manicured lawn and open pool on a cliff overlooking the city. Wife Caroline (Kerry Washington, The Last King of Scotland) is forced to change the diaper of their son on the kitchen counter and just wishes that Jack would put their lives ahead of his life. Meanwhile, Jack looks to land the manuscript from spiritual guru Dr. Sinja (Cliff Curtis, Colombiana), assuring Sinja that he will do whatever it takes to spread the word that is contained in his written work. While doing do, Jack is poked by a splinter on the trunk of a Bodhi tree. After Jack receives a five-page pamphlet instead of a brilliant self-help book, he confronts Sinja - to no avail. Afterward, at home, the same Bodhi tree suddenly appears in his backyard. After he touches the tree and speaks, a leaf starts falling off the tree for each word Jack utters. As more and more leaves fall, Jack becomes weaker and more sickly. Sinja realizes that Jack now shares a symbiotic relationship with the tree, and should focus his efforts on understanding how to find the truth within himself and spend less time chattering away with empty words.

Eddie Murphy has almost become synonymous with off-beat comedies that focus on self-discovery and enlightenment with films like Daddy Day Care, Imagine That, and the first two Doctor Dolittle movies. And with Click writer Koren in writing duties, we come close to getting a film with much of the same tone, if not the same manic quality that Sandler brought to bear. Luckily, Murphy also has the Shrek movies and the most recent Tower Heist to balance out his work. In A Thousand Words Murphy falls back on his extensive 'mugging' talents, his character forced to act out his requests and come up with creative ways that do not cross the rules of the karmic cosmos. McCall cannot even write any words down to communicate without causing leaves to fall off the tree since writing down words would be too easy a way to dialogue.

Murphy's expressiveness and the silly situations he finds himself in at home, work and around time supplies audible laughs for the film. Joined with his trusty assistant Aaron Wiseberger (Clark Duke, Hot Tub Time Machine), Murphy's McCall gets himself as much trouble as he gets out of. Cliff Curtis shows his versatility by playing the quiet and reserved spiritual leader Sinja, trusting that truth will set McCall free before the last leaf falls. But the laughs and smiles are tempered with more deep rooted (pun intended) issues that McCall needs to face and address, including the issues with his wife, the approval he needs to be acknowledged for by an Alzheimer's-ridden mother Annie (Ruby Dee, American Gangster) who mistakes Jack for his own father each time he visits her.

A Thousand Words is not for all audiences. Not that the film is not good - I was pleasantly surprised. People looking for continuous over-the-top Eddie Murphy hilarity will be somewhat disappointed. Although humor abounds, the film is a balance of silly and serious. Unlike Click and Imagine That, A Thousand Words should appeal to and satisfy a more adult moviegoing crowd. Without the inclusion of a precocious child, the story is still light but with a more mature slant.

As each leaf falls from the Bodhi tree and its branches become more barren, Jack McCall's inconvenient audible situation becomes more dire. Full of silent expressions, charades-style dialogue, and handy props to aid him, Eddie Murphy makes a dramedy that delights and enlightens, all along the journey's road that is our lives.

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WORTH: Matinee or DVD

The Help

Heartbreaking and Uplifting

Director: Tate Taylor

Writers: Tate Taylor, Kathryn Stockett

Cast: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Sissy Spacek, Cicely Tyson, Allison Janney, Jessica Chastain, Bryce Dallas Howard

SYNOPSIS: In the early 1960s, aspiring journalist Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan returns to Jackson, Mississippi and strikes out to tell the stories from the perspective of the 'Help', the African American maids and nannies who have spent their lives taking care of the white families children and households.

REVIEW: The Help is a 2009 novel written by Kathryn Stockett centering around the lives of several main characters living and working in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi. Written from Stockett's novel and directed for the screen by Tate Taylor, writer and director of 2008s Pretty Ugly People, The Help takes a humorous, heartfelt and hard look at the cultural chasms between the races.

1960s Jackson, Mississippi is a southern town where an African American woman is good enough to raise a white woman's child but not good enough to use their employers toilet, where segregation is still instituted and carried out, and where the concepts of Civil Rights are soon to become a real movement. Eugenia 'Skeeter' Phelan (Emma Stone) returns after college graduation more enlightened and ready to pursue a career in journalism. Listening to and abhorring the way some of the 'southern belles' think of and treat their maids, Skeeter reaches out to Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis), a middle-aged African American maid who has spent her life raising white children. First using Aibileen's advice for an advice column, Skeeter soon realizes there is a greater, deeper story to be told. Mississippi State law states that any written work that supports the civil rights of the negro community could land the writer in prison, so Skeeter, Aibileen, and soon the outspoken sass-talking maid Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) must meet in secret to get the maids' stories committed to paper. Along the way, Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny must deal with Junior League head and community social leader Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard) as Hilly strives to get an initiative passed to have separate bathroom facilities installed outside houses where 'colored' help is employed.

The Help focuses on the relationships, good and bad, between white southern families and their African American maids. From households where the maids have raised the children from early ages and have become an integral part of the family, to households where the maids are called upon to make sandwiches for a husband just arriving home while being expected to hush a crying child in the same moment without regard for her worth, each instance defines the deep-south, deep-rooted opinion of of the races.

Emma Stone, in a role more challenging than anything she has done before, brings a naked naivety and hopefulness to Skeeter that does the character proud. Viola Davis as Aibileen expands a performance just as powerful as her Oscar nominated Best Supporting Actress role for Doubt. Octavia Spencer adds as much sass to Minny Jackson as her character adds spices to her Crisco fried chicken. Bryce Dallas Howard's Hilly Holbrook exudes arrogance, contempt and fear of cultural change as she strives to propagate and expand the established segregation that already exists. Pairing off against Minny for more comic effect is Jessica Chastain as white social circle outsider Celia Foote. And rounding out the main cast are a couple of mothers... Allison Janney as Skeeter's ailing health cultural coward mother Charlotte and Sissy Spacek as forgetful, but compassionate Missus Walters. Every performance is riveting, powerful and enlightening.

The Help is a heartfelt, heartbreaking, uplifting, humorous and hard look at the social sentiment between the races as recently as 50 years ago, and the distance that equality and understanding still needed to travel. Powerful performances by powerful actresses, The Help is one of the films to watch come Oscar time. For the immediate future, though, be sure to keep an eye on Minny Jackson's pies.

WORTH: Matinee or DVD