Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Michael Caton-Jones, eh? De Niro and McDormand and James Franco, huh? Guess I should be interested. But for some reason, that trailer leaves me cold. Is the film any better? THE GRIN weighs in:
Hmm. It's 9:30AM and I had forgotten, until just now, that I actually SAW the sneak preview of "City by the Sea" last night. That might be a telling detail. Here's a spoiler-free review:
Caton-Jones shows impressive self-control, keeping the music minimal and subdued, the cinematography effective and moody without drawing attention to itself, and just focuses on the actors, who are more than worthy of our attention. It's enough to remind you that a while back, Caton-Jones directed Deniro in another effective drama: "This Boy's Life".
"City" is "based on a true story", but as we all well know, that doesn't mean a thing.
(When you've seen the film, go to http://www.the-trades.com/column.php?columnid=1295 to find out just how little of the truth remains onscreen.)
The movie is so far from the true story that many of its main characters are completely fictional, as are the marital status, crimes in question, and vocations of its central characters.
[Side note: Still, I give I think it's a more honorable effort than "A Beautiful Mind", which invented fictional details to give the film more sentimental appeal and audience impact. Ron Howard's film was a crock, with an ending that was far from the "true story", putting easy answers and happy endings where they did not actually occur. "City by the Sea", on the other hand, does not gloss over life's harsh realities. It shows us the messiness, the wages of sin, and its vision of redemption avoids cheesy slogans and easy answers.]
DeNiro plays Vincent LaMarca, a cop haunted by memories of his father who was executed for violent crimes. Now an acclaimed investigator, LaMarca is on the case of a murdered junkie. It's no spoiler to tell you that the prime suspect is his son Joey... that's in all the previews. But what this discovery does to LaMarca is a story that the previews only hinted at. This is not another high-action cop thriller. It's a family drama. The summertime audience that packed the house for this sneak preview was clearly disappointed; they were restless and anxious for the moment that the movie would explode into action.
Nope. This is a story of error, regret, conscience, and responsibility.
I think this is the first REAL performance DeNiro has given in a while. Sure, he falls into many of his all-too-familiar 'Are you out of your mind?' arguments, but he speaks quietly and sincerely and reveals a softer, more affectionate side in his wonderful scenes with Frances McDormand. The two make a believable and appealing couple. I enjoyed their quiet, human interaction so much that I was disappointed when we went back to the more urgent plotline. McDormand shows that yet again she can do wonders with a small role.
James Franco continues to impress. As a junkie-on-the-run, he gives the character a broken heart and a convincing bitterness towards the parents who abandoned him. He's the only convincing member of the film's small crowd of junkies. The others look like leftover villains from NYPD Blue, with ludicrous nicknames like "Spider" and "Snake". One drawback: As Jude Law proved in "Road to Perdition", there are some actors who will look like male models no matter how badly you beat them up.
Another pleasant surprise: Eliza Dushku of "Buffy" fame gives a memorable performance as Joey's troubled girlfriend. It reminded me of Ashley Judd's jarring-but-brief junkie in "Smoke". She may have a serious big screen future after this.
Unfortunately, there's almost too much drama for the film to handle. You can feel the film straining to reach an emotional climax in the final fifteen minutes. Instead, we get two big mistakes in a row.
The first mistake is one of those intelligence-insulting shots in which we circle the hero while he listens to voices in his head, voices that echo and overlap, repeating all of the important things people have said throughout the movie that lead him to this decision. Come on. Give the audience a little respect. We've been paying attention. We've noticed the questions our hero is facing.
The second mistake is a melodramatic and painfully verbose DeNiro breakdown that isn't quite convincing.
Still, I'm giving the film good marks. It's far more artful and accomplished than most films in this genre. It never goes for cheap crowdpleasing. And it's final shot is graceful, leaving a lot of loose ends. Caton-Jones fades out the film showing that he clearly understands that this story is not about how all the details work out, but about one man's heart and his slow awakening to moral responsibility.
Why is it called "City by the Sea"? Well, it's an okay metaphor for the LaMarca family. Once, Long Beach was a bright, bustling, appealing recreation spot; now, as LaMarca says as he looks out the car window searching for his son, "It looks like the Serbian army came through." Likewise, LaMarca's broken family is an irreparable shell. The younger LaMarca tries to hold onto hope that someday he'll be able to return to Key West, where his family spent one happy vacation.
These geographical reference points highlight the film's central question: can broken things be put back together? Is there any way to break the cycle of the sins of the fathers being passed on to their sons? Are we doomed to follow a path in life that has been determined for us? Like "Minority Report", "City by the Sea" culminates with a desperate appeal to freewill: "You can choose! You can choose!"
While I watched it, the movie surprised and impressed me. Deniro fans should see it, if only for the small pleasure of seeing him onscreen with McDormand. But its unpredictability is commendable as well. It's a cop drama that did not go any of the places I expected it would go. Caton-Jones shows he's capable of films that are more art than entertainment. I could feel the crowd growing restless in their desire for a big chase, a big shootout, some moment when the real-life drama broke into Hollywood crowdpleasing. It never happened. It remained patient and thoughtful and human to the end. That's a rarity, especially in the summertime.
If only the film hadn't fumbled its grip on believability. Its big finale includes a geyser of desperate sentimental words, things that could have been easily suggested or implied by letting the actors do the work. While it shows admirable restraint for a long time, in the end, the film quits "showing" and starts "telling."
Thus, I don't find myself with much to think about now that it's over. Perhaps that's why, instead of waking up with the story on my mind, I instead enjoyed two cups of breakfast tea and worked for two hours before it even occurred to me that I'd just been to the new Deniro film.
It's as though overnight something subtle happened... I have this vague memory that somebody shifted from "SUMMER MOVIE SEASON" into "FALL."
And that... makes me... smile....
THE GRIN
Thanks, man. I will have to peek at this one, no matter what, just for the talent involved, and it sounds like there’s some good stuff in there.
"Moriarty" out.
