NEWS JUNKIE POST
Jun 30, 2010 at 2:24 pmDouglas’ ‘Solitary Man’: Serious Summer Screen Stealer
For those looking to circumvent the big blockbusters, kid stuff and puerile comedies, summer at the movie theatre can leave us cold. Michael Douglas’ sad, smoldering performance in “Solitary Man,” which might have been left in the pre-Oscar popcorn dust of the fall, is one of the season’s serious surprises.
I don’t want to over-sell “Solitary Man.” It’s a good, but seriously flawed film that wouldn’t succeed ( or probably have been made) on any level if it wasn’t for Douglas’ performance. The basic set-up: Douglas plays Ben Kalmen a former uber-successful New York car dealer who ditched his loyal wife ( Oscar winner Susan Sarandon in an under-written role) and rep as “New York’s honest car dealer” six years earlier after learning of a potentially life-threatening heart problem, trading them in for a life on the edge consisting of excessive alcohol consumption, casual sexual encounters and shoddy business practices. The latter finally landed him in legal hot water.
And that’s when we meet him: trying to piece it all back together, rekindling his relationship with his daughter ( Jenna Fischer) and grandson as he gets a foot hold back into the industry he disgraced courtesy of his current “steady,” a forty-something woman with big time business connections ( Mary Louise Parker). But making it back won’t be easy for the guy who has self-sabotage written all over his weathered face.
Douglas who has made a career mastering dark, edgy characters from the lawyer looking for trouble and getting more than he bargained for in “Fatal Attraction” to the cop courting sex and possibly murder in “Basic Instinct,” has gotten better with age. Despite a physique that could curry envy from men half his age, the star’s face displays every one of his sixty-five years. Even obvious and sorry attempts at the hands of Hollywood’s youth preservers can’t undercut the baggage Douglas carries with him; his life wounds work to add layers of pathos to a despicable character.
Brian Koppelman’s script wanders, straying occasionally into far-fetched scenarios. Kalmen’s encounters with a college student ( the affable Jesse Eisenberg) that land him at not one but two keg parties, stretch credulity and leave the impression the filmmakers( Koppelman co-directs with David Levien) are trying too hard. His entanglements with his daughter’s friend and his girlfriend’s daughter are lesser leaps given the character’s faulty moral compass and last-ditch libido.
There are a few brief attempts to reignite or at least reconcile his relationship with his ex-wife, but Sarandon–always a screen pleaser–isn’t afforded enough time or details with which to make much hay. As Kalmen’s daughter Fisher fares better, given a greater chance to display the trajectory of her troubled relationship with her errant father. Ironically, the most chemistry Douglas generates is with Danny Devito, playing Kalmen’s old college buddy, who after thirty (more like forty-five) years picks up where their youthful connection left off. Anyone who’s re-connected with old pals via facebook can relate to the friendly shorthand, embedded at a sensitive, impressionable age.
More an intriguing character study than neat narrative, Michael Douglas’ dark, desperate performance makes “Solitary Man” worth the price of admission. Think of it as the warm-up act to “Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps,” Oliver Stone’s much anticipated sequel set to kick up pre-Oscar popcorn dust this fall.
“Solitary Man,” starring Michael Douglas. Directed by David Levien and Brian Koppelman.
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Excellent review, Amy. I’m going to look into this one.
(As for “Wall Street 2″, I’m wary. I loved the first “Wall Street”, but after the cartoonish tone and script of “W.”, I’m not so sure Oliver Stone can chew the leather like he used to…. Hopefully he can redeem himself.)
I enjoy Michael Douglas’ performances and am looking forward to this movie as well. Your excellent review had made me want to see this one soon. Thanks!
Douglas? ?Solitary Man?: Serious Summer Screen Stealer…
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