Frances Ha (2013)

I kind of feel odd writing this review.  I actually saw Frances Ha several weeks ago. and for some reason really struggled to get any notes down about it.  Even as I write this, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to write much.  I think this is mainly due to the fact that I don't have a critique of Frances Ha.  I've often said in conversation that sometimes when I really like a film, I don't have much more to say about it than, "I really liked it!"  France Ha is a movie that's stuck with me in the weeks since seeing it, and it's likely to end up in my top 10 best films of 2013.  Hell, it's probably in my top 5 so far.

Another reason I had time getting my thoughts down about it is because like Seinfeld, Frances Ha is about nothing.  Well, not exactly "nothing", but it's not a plot driven story.  It's also set in New York, so I'm wondering if there's some kind of indie film rule that movies about single people in New York have to be character studies.

This isn't a bad thing as long as it's about an interesting or likeable character.  France Ha follows the life of a 20-something woman in New York as she deals with friendship, finding work and a place to stay, and just generally trying to find her place in the world.  Frances (Greta Gerwig) is a dancer, yet can't find work beyond teaching the occasional class.  She has money issues and difficulty with her living situation as a result.  As the film begins, Frances breaks up with her boyfriend, so there's that, too.  To her credit, she didn't really seem too into the guy and didn't dwell on their breakup, so I appreciate that.  Her best friend Sophie (Mickey Sumner) on the other hand, is the opposite of this.  Her career is taking off, her relationship is getting more serious, and the two of them begin to drift apart.  Frances deals and struggles with all of these issues as the movie goes on.

Frances Ha is sometimes funny, sometimes uncomfortable, and sometimes it's both.  What makes it all work is that it's easy to relate to Frances, whether you know someone just like her, or see a lot of yourself in her.  Who hasn't dealt with money issues, or watching your friends drift away after getting serious in a relationship?  I know I've gone through some of these things over the course of my life.

At one point, Frances fibs her way through a conversation, and you want to be mad at her because she's full of shit and lying for no real reason, but then I can recall times when I've flubbed my way through a conversation to either save face or act like I knew what I was talking about.  Later, she takes an impulsive trip to Paris in an effort to catch up with someone.  While there, her best friend finally calls her and invites her to a party.  Frances tells her she can't make it, but never mentions she's in Paris.  Why doesn't she just tell her where she is?  When you see Frances do stuff like this, she comes off as that classic person that can't get out of their own way.

Despite all of this, Frances manages to be likeable.  It's not like she's mean or a bad person.  She'd be a fun person to hang around with, although there are other times you want to shake her violently in the hopes that it gets her to straighten up.  I had a love/hate relationship with Frances.  Much of the reason why you're able to still like Frances is due to the performance of Greta Gerwig.  If it had been a different actress, it might not have worked.  As the character isn't always flattering, I was surprised to see that Gerwig co-wrote the film with director Noah Baumbach.  You get the feeling that she put a little of her own life experience in Frances.  It's also her finest performance to date.  I've always thought she had an endearing awkwardness about her, and that's really on display here.  Let this be a lesson to Hollywood on why dramedies or romantic comedies starring people like Katherine Heigl don't work.  You have to actually believe the person in the role or have a reason to relate to them.  Being clumsy or eating junk food is not an endearing character trait.

Noah Baumbach seems to have a knack for making honest, funny, uncomfortable films that don't always feature the most likeable people.  I strongly recommend watching The Squid and the Whale if you haven't seen it yet.  He's becoming one of my favorite writer/directors out there.  I also really enjoyed the choice to film this in black and white.  Much like how I felt about it in Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing, it really makes you focus on the dialog and emotion, rather than get caught up in the visuals.  Whether it was the use of black and white, the film's setting, or the music used, I also got a real Woody Allen vibe from the film.

Oscillating between hilarious, uncomfortable and frustrating, Frances Ha is always interesting.  One of the better films I've seen this year, it's a real and honest look at a woman struggling with friendship and transitioning into adulthood.  It's likely out of theaters by the time you read this, so I strongly recommend renting this.

4.5 (out of 5) Death Stars

To Rome with Love (2012) - Movie Review

Has it always been a theme in Woody Allen films that regardless of whether or not a character is in a relationship, they'll sleep with pretty much anyone they are currently in the room with?  I've noticed this in some of his recent films and it's been bugging me.  Not everyone sleeps around.  Some people still believe in things like monogamy or being faithful.  Anyway...

Spoilers ahead...

To Rome with Love is the latest Woody Allen joint.  Rather than a central story, you get several short stories told in a very choppy style.  At the beginning, it's natural to assume that all these stories will come together at the end, and you'll get some kind of satisfying payoff, but neither happen.  They are completely independent of one another, so the storytelling is very disjointed.  It doesn't help that some are in English and some are subtitled, so you're constantly having to switch how you're viewing the movie.  Also, the stories are of varying levels of quality, so some you have no interest in.  Just when you get invested in one story, it switches to another you don't care about.

One vignette features Roberto Benigni, a man who wakes up one morning and is suddenly famous.  Nobody knows what for, but he is followed everywhere by the media, reporting on every detail of his life.  This could have been a funny commentary about the nature of celebrity, but it's really not fleshed out.  It's played more for a gag than anything.

Penélope Cruz is featured in another as a prostitute, Anna, that meets up with Antonio (Alessandro Tiberi).  It appears to be a case of mistaken identity, as Anna is really intended for someone else, but Antonio goes along with it anyway.  Their entire plot could have been removed, as you don't really care about his character at all.  The resolution to their story is one of the things that bugged me the most with regards to sleeping around.  Antonio finally sleeps with Anna, and then you recall that he's married.  Meanwhile, his wife, Milly (Alessandra Mastronardi), had a short story involving her sleeping with some celebrity, but interrupted in their hotel room by a robber.  However, she ends up just sleeping with the robber.  What the hell!?  Maybe because of all the jumping around with the stories, or maybe this was when I stepped out to use the bathroom, but I don't remember that they established that Antonio and Milly were married, so this was a surprise to me.  Either way, I though their whole story was very clumsy and hard to believe.  I will say that for the short time she had in the movie, Alessandra Mastronardi just lights up the screen.

One of the longer stories is of Jack (Jesse Eisenberg) being met on the street by John (Alec Baldwin).  In one of the more fantastical elements of the film, you realize that John is not actually there and appears to be the older version of Jack visiting his younger self.  As first, you think John just may be a figment of Jack's imagination, as he appears randomly and has conversations that nobody seems to notice, but then other characters interact with John.  So it's very unclear as to what John is.  It's also unclear if he's trying to prevent Jack from making the same mistake or just revisiting a part of his life.  Another thing that took me out story was that if John was, in fact, interacting with the younger version of himself, why didn't they cast an actor that looked the part or acted in any way like him?  It didn't fit at all.

Also, once again, we have a story about cheating.  Jack's in a stable, happy relationship with Sally (Greta Gerwig), but is tempted by a visiting friend, Monica (Ellen Page).  I thought Ellen Page was totally miscast here.  She's supposed to be this sexually open woman that Jack is just drawn to, and her character is described explicitly as being sexy, but that was the last thing I thought of when watching her performance.  While you can be sexy without being a bombshell, Page still looks like a child, and no point did I find her seductive in any way.

Woody Allen seems to have saved the best story for himself.  Allen plays Jerry, a retired music producer that travels to Rome with his wife (Judy Davis) to meet the family of Michelangelo (Flavio Parenti), the man his daughter (Alison Pill) plans on marrying.  He finds that Michelangelo's father (played by real life opera singer, Fabio Armiliato), has an amazing singing voice, but can only sing when in the shower.  This leads to Jerry pushing Michelangelo's father to pursue singing and looks for creative ways to get him on stage.  This story ended up being the most interesting and the only one that felt complete.

After last year's Midnight in Paris, I think many might have heightened expectations going into To Rome with Love, but this doesn't have the same charm or humor of Paris.  Rome has too many undeveloped stories, characters and ideas.  Many of the jokes felt stale.  Despite that Paris is essentially a fantasy movie, its characters and situations felt more realistic than Rome's.

I know it sounds like I hated To Rome with Love, but I actually didn't.  It's the very definition of a mixed bag.  Some of it works, some of it didn't.  It's a bit of a mess, but a watchable one.  It suffers from a lack of focus and too many undeveloped stories.  Rome is a disappointing follow up to Midnight in Paris, but that's a tough act to follow, even for Woody Allen.  Save it for rental.

2.5 (out of 5) Death Stars