Hey folks, Harry here with a couple of reviews that... well, they ain't necessarily bad reviews, but they ain't necessarily raving either. Seems that the film has people scratching their heads a bit... Hmmm, My faith are in the Brothers... They always deliver...
I saw a press screening of "Intolerable Cruelty" in New York today.
Strange movie. They were giving out passes to a lot of film students, presumably because they figured, "Hey, film students like Coen Brothers movies."
But--and this isn't neccesarily a bad thing, but definitely a potentially disappointing thing--it didn't feel like a Coen Brothers movie. More like a standard romantic comedy into which the Coen sensibility is airlifted on occasion. (The senior partner at George Clooney's law firm comes to mind, as does an animated credits sequence, the introduction of a European Baron and a minor character called Wheezy Joe.)
George Clooney's character, Miles Massey, is engaging and entertaining throughout. Catherine Zeta-Jones is beautiful but boring. Much effort is put into making her look her best--it's clear the camera loves her--but her performance never rises above wooden.
Why, exactly, is Geoffrey Rush in this movie? I have a feeling there was more to him but it got cut. His presence is almost entirely limited to a long opening sequence that doesn't really connect to anything. Billy Bob Thorton steals the show during his limited presence and Cedric the Entertainer is quite amusing. Some beautiful shots, and the music is good, even catchy.
All in all there are a few chuckles and one truly laugh-out-loud moment after a very funny... equipment mixup. (I dare not spoil.) If this is the Coen's attempt to go mainstream, and make a more standard movie than "a Coen Brothers movie", it's not a bad effort, but it may not sit well with the type of fan who can quote "The Big Lebowski" chapter-and-verse. I give it a B-minus.
--Shepard
Then here comes SR Hadden from Mir... he's a particular sorta fella... always messing with Clarice.
“Intolerable Cruelty”
I was able to catch a press screening of “Intolerable Cruelty,” the new Coen Bros. Film at the Universal Screening Room on 5th Ave. in New York this afternoon. It was certainly a surprise, and since I was anticipating the Coens leap into traditional Hollywood-style romcom, and leapt at the opportunity.
Now, we were warned that this was a work print, and that the score and pacing might not be final, but the fact of the matter is, it doesn’t matter. This may be the weakest Coen Bros. film in over a decade.
This is not to say that this is a terrible film, or even an average one – in fact, it far surpasses your typical studio romantic formula. The dialogue is undeniably clever, and the twists imaginative, but something…just wasn’t right. Then it hit me – this shouldn’t have been a Coen bros. film.
And while Joel directed it, Ethan produced it, and they both wrote it, there are also some other names thrown into the mix. There’s Brian Grazer (there’s no denying he’s a reliable producer), and two writers – Robert Ramsey and Matthew Stone (both of whom, and not the Coens, receive “story” credit). Frankly, I would have been interested to see their original draft directed by, say, Peter Chelsom (?), just to see if maybe, it might have worked better. Because the uniqueness and brilliance that is Coen actually manages to feel awkward and forced in this film.
spoilers throughout
George Clooney (who does an absolutely fantastic job) plays Miles Massey, divorce attorney extraordinaire. Miles can solve anything. In the opening scene of the film, Geoffrey Rush (why is he in this??) plays a TV producer who returns home to find his wife in bed with a pool man. The scene turns violent, Rush’s character pulls a gun, and the marriage, within a few moments, falls apart. The next time we see Rush’s character, he’s a bum, living on the street. Hence the magic of Miles Massey.
Catherine Zeta-Jones plays his foil – Marilyn Rexroth, a blossoming career divorcee, she is alerted by a private eye (Cedric the Entertainer), that her husband (Edward Herrmann) is cheating on her. They immediately split, and Clooney is placed in Herrmann’s corner. It doesn’t take long for him to dig up her motives, and as a result, she loses the case. Massey is clearly fascinated and attracted to Marilyn, and perhaps she to him. But before their relationship can develop, she shows up with Howard Doyle (Billy Bob Thornton, in a momentarily cute cameo), and has Massey draw up one of his legendary prenups – ensuring, this time, that she couldn’t possibly be in it for the money.
But this isn’t possible of course – we know, and Massey knows she’s up to something, and frankly, given the connection she makes with the now-bum Geoffrey Rush, it shouldn’t be too difficult to see where the next half hour progresses. While the film manages a few interesting moments in its last act, for the most part, the film, from the moment I describe on, is very much on autopilot.
Except of course, for the aforementioned Coenisms. Now, what I have described above is a reasonably typical romantic comedy, that could star, say, George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones. Or Richard Gere and Julia Roberts. Or Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock. It doesn’t matter – these characters aren’t that interesting, and Clooney alone breathes some life into his. But imagine this comedy interspersed with some truly oddball moments. Standing out are scenes with Massey’s elderly law partner. Think Hudsucker. Then there’s never-mentioned-again Klaus the Baron von Espy (from the trailer). Think Lebowski. Then there’s the wheezy hitman. Think…Fargo? Whatever the connections may be, these moments simply don’t fit. Where in a normal Coen experience, one can let these moments wash over and create a truly unique tone to a film, here, they’re awkward. They feel out of place, like, well, Cedric the Entertainer in a Coen bros. movie. But he does fit in this movie. This is studio entertainment with a dose of brilliance thrown in, and you know what? Worlds collide, and it’s not pretty. Maybe these guys just can’t do mainstream. The Coens took what would have been an extremely run-of-the-mill romcom, and redid moments in their own particular…idiom. But in the end, they should have gone further, or not gone at all.
But that said, there are quite a few bright points. The writing is lightning quick, and very smart. The cinematography by Deakins is, as usual, amazing. Clooney’s performance is really surprisingly good – his timing is perfect, his face uncharacteristically unfrozen and full of expression. Many of the side characters (Edward Herrmann and Cedric the Entertainer have some great scenes) work, with the exception of “Wrigley” played by Paul Adelstein, who I think falls flat. If you look carefully, Bruce Campbell makes an appearance (always a pleasure to have him around). Zeta-Jones isn’t a liability, but she fails to bring her character to life for me – though with Deakins’ cinematography, she looks absolutely amazing.
So, in the end, this ends up as somewhat of a sterile hybrid. It’s too weird to work as a mainstream romcom, but too mainstream to work as a Coen film. With some tightening in the editing room, I can imagine this working a bit better, but right now, at 98 minutes, it can’t spare much length. As much as I hate to say it, there are some great scenes in this film which simply don’t fit. But who knows, it may act as transitional material for a larger audience, and “A Coen Bros. Film” may mean more to a casual filmgoer.
One can only hope.
SR Hadden, calling from Mir
