Hey folks, Harry here... One of the great joys I've had in discovering a film was when I walked into that Chicago Screening room and watched ELECTION for the first time.... I really had no idea what i was walking into, but as I sat there falling more and more in love with that flick... Rediscovering a love for Matthew Broderick on film... Watching Reese Witherspoon being a fricking super genius... and Chris Klein actually not acting like wood, but being very very clever. Alexander Payne did this... And if you haven't been eagerly anticipating ABOUT SCHMIDT then I pity you. This is going to be great. Beware of spoilers, but this review confirms it's great!!!
Last night, I attended a screening of About Schmidt in Agourra HIlls. This is the new movie from director Alexander Payne, the genius behind Election and Citizen Ruth (if you haven't seen these, SEE THEM NOW!). It starred Jack Nickolson, co-starred Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, and Kathy Bates.The story follows Warren Schmidt (Nickolson), who has just retired from his job at the age of sixty-six. Of course, he lives in Omaha, Nebraska, just like in every other Alexander Payne movie. After Warren has retired, he doesn't know what to do with himself. He finds that every little thing that his wife does annoys him beyond belief. His position as boss at his company was taken over by a confident young hot shot. His daughter (hope davis), who he loves more than anyone in the world, lives in Denver, Colorado, and is going to marry a completely idiotic mattress salesman (Dermot Mulroney). Schmidt HATES this man and thinks his daughter deserves better. After this is all set up, Schmidt is watching TV and sees one of those commercials narrated by Angela Lansbury about starving children in Tanzania. Schmidt decides to become a foster father for a child, so he calls. He then receives the information about his new son, and sends him mail about his life. After he gets back from the post office, he finds his wife dead on the kitchen floor. This is all set up in the first twenty minutes or so. The rest of the movie involves Schmidt dealing with the loss of his wife, writing more letters to his new son "Ndugu", and going on the road to Denver to try to stop his daughter from marrying Mulroney's character. Basically, during the entire movie, Schmidt is trying to figure out what his worth is in the world, because he doesn't think he has done anything significant. He believes that by stopping his daughter's wedding he will be doing something great for her, that she will appreciate someday. I won't say anything else about the story, but that is the set-up. Let me just say that I did NOT think this movie would live up to Election.
BUT IT DID!!!!!. IT WAS FANTASTIC! It probably will be BETTER than Election once it is finished. We were the first audience to see it, and there is a long time before it comes out (I heard March). The more I think about the movie, it gets better in my mind. I don't even know where to start. I guess I should first say that this script (by Payne & co-writer Jim Taylor) was f***ing brilliant! It is so hilarious, yet also touching (definitely more drama than Election or Citizen Ruth). Alexander Payne is the MASTER of making akward situations soooooooo funny. Through the smallest gestures of a character, he can make the entire audience laugh out loud. He also creates the most realistic movies in that all the actors look like normal people, not movie stars. It makes everything seem much more genuine.
Jack Nickolson was incredible, and its so great seeing him react to these awkward situations with strangers, friends, or even his wife. His adventures on the road are indescribable. They are just too funny. I can't say enough for Dermot Mulroney, who was by far the funniest character in the movie. When you first see him, you just know he's going to be hilariously stupid. His mom was played perfectly by Kathy Bates. Quite possibly the funniest and most unexpected scene in history (I'm completely serious!) involves Kathy's character. I can't say anything else, but oh my god, it is ridiculous how funny it was. Whoever played Schmidt's wife was great, Schmidt's friend was great, Schmidt's daughter played by Hope Davis was really good (but was underused). Every performance by even the smallest parts was just perfect.
The pace of the movie was slow at the beginning, but it set up the character of Schmidt really well, and the ending was FABULOUS. I didn't think Payne could pull off an ending to this movie, but he did. I struggled to hold back tears while my friend cried. There are so many funny scenes in this movie that I want to talk about but I can't, becuz I won't do them justice. All I can say is that old people can be soooooo funny. I want to see this movie again right now. It will be just like election in that I will watch it over and over and love it more and more every time I see it.
I hope they can at least get this movie on a limited release by December so it can be up for oscars. Production design (the sets were perfect!), actor-jack nickolson, supporting actor-dermot mulroney & kathy bates, adapted screenplay, best director, and best picture- the movie SHOULD AT LEAST be nominated for these. I hope the academy won't suck like they have recently and will nominate this movie more than they did Election. Jack Nickolson and Alexander Payne/Jim Taylor both deserve to WIN.....
