« someone get this gal a cold shower. | Main | this is why people read their horoscopes. »
August 04, 2004
buttleman: the review. Yes, of course there may be spoilers. Deal with it - you should have already seen the film by now.
I've been enthusiastically supporting Buttleman for the last year now. I have been all "hey! it has Karen Black and Dan Castellaneta and Steve Falk and John Hawkes and Pamela Ribon and woah nelly, it's just got to be a great time! And I've been terribly excited about the project, without ever having seen the movie.
of course, I'm having a weird unrelated meta media moment here, because I'm sitting at my desk in a bizarre underwear/pyjama outfit, eating a popsicle and typing on my new laptop while I ask myself (a la carrie bradshaw):
"How can I so soundly support a film that I haven't experienced?"
I wish this answer had a hot sex maniac, a pragmatic lawyer, and a starry eyed romantic to keep this little writer company, tho, because it would then probably be more interesting (and, perhaps, more marketable) than the real story.
or maybe not. I'll pick up a pair of manolos and tell ya how it works for me.
anyway, I enthusiastically championed Buttleman, without even so much as READING A COPY OF THE SCRIPT, because I very much want Frank to succeed. Because his strong personality, his gawky confidence, his enthusiastically funny and poignant and honest storytelling all appeal to me in a way that I can't quite separate from my love for him, as my closest highschool pal.
My personal involvement with the director, as an old friend and former co-consipirator compells me to spur him on. I want to believe that Buttleman is a great film and that the time and money and effort and love and hope that everyone has invested is well-met with whatever it is that each person hoped to get out of their investment.
I want to know that someone who believes in himself, in his own talent, in his future is someone who will gain the respect and career that he deserves.
And so, I am delighted that I so thoroughly enjoyed the film when I saw it on Saturday that I can't keep myself from jumping up and down with the knowledge that it is just as good as I hoped for, in exactly the areas that I expected.
Yes, the art direction and editing and visual language of the film are a little rough...I found myself wondering, at times, if we were watching through Harold Buttleman's camera or through the forth wall or through the eyes of another character...there's a sequence with a dog and a neck brace that I just can't reconcile with the rest of the movie....but damn, the dog is cute…
But the direction, the story, the dialogue, and the acting...oh, and the theme song (three versions of which are running through my head right now)...the warmth and sadness of the film totally yanked me past all that.
oh my god.
I'm truly impressed with the gestures in this film...yes, I know I laugh at weird things, like how Harold (Hawkes) wears gardening gloves and his sister's helmet for safety...like the mention of a “Door County Fish Boil”…
...Doug's (Falk) excitement at getting a chance at cable - ("kick ass!") - when he gestures in that hilariously reflective "actor being a non-actor on camera" in the early morning stunt scene, when he talks about how Harold hurt his sister... (yes, I know, it's "his character' - you know what I mean) he is just so amazing I wanted to get up and hug Frank for making that performance possible.
and man, seeing John Hawkes as Harold Buttleman - ... dude. seriously. His performance is genius. I don't know how to say it without being 'girl from the director’s hometown who just wants him to succeed like he deserves"...I just can't escape the fact that sincerity is tainted with gaylordian self consciousness.... but i really gotta say : I'm proud of you, Frank.
If anyone had asked me, before I saw the film, what it's all about, I'd have told them it was about a small town tuxedo salesman who enthusiastically corrals his friends into helping him attempt to achieve his doomed dream of being the next Evel Knievel.
And that is one way of reading the film. but wait, there's more.
The tragedy of Buttleman - the BRILLIANT TRAGEDY - is that despite all his passion and eager enthusiasm, despite the support of his friends and tough-love support of his family, Harold Buttleman isn't Evel Knievel. He's a guy who can really make things happen - but he picked the wrong thing.
The movie is about the very thing that I've been struggling with, as a creative soul who chose to work for money rather than her art, and failed anyway... How do you know if the direction you've chosen for yourself is the right direction (but you just haven't yet gotten to your successful destination) or if it's just the wrong road entirely?
Heck, most of my "Arty Actorson" friends have struggled with all this.
Your friends can't really tell you if you're right or wrong, can they? Your parents can only be expected to let you mooch out of their basement for so long before they get fed up, right? Hell, what if your investment in the illusion of your future is so complete, you have nothing left to give to your relationships (both romantic and platonic)?
The genius behind the film is that, despite every single dorky wrong-headed thing Harold does, I'm on his side. I want him to win, and I want his coattails to be strong enough to hold everyone who ever helped him out.
Yeah.
Okay, it's pretty obvious that I love Frank, that I want him to do well and that I am so very very proud of him for following his dreams and for being the writer/ director that I've always thought he should be. So, anyway. Yay Frank. You inspire me. First step: to choose what the hell I want to be when I grow up. I can only hope that, like you, I'm right when I finally decide.
and kids, remember: Stay In School.
Posted by Heather at August 4, 2004 10:21 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.picturepicture.net/cgi-bin/mt/mtb.cgi/237
Comments
You forgot to mention the sheer genius of the line "The DEUCE!!!" when referring to ESPN 2.
Perhaps my favorite line, "I can swim. I'm not boyant, but I can swim."
And who can forget, "RELEASE THE DOGS!"
Posted by: Some Ambiguous Commentator (ruined by adding a URL below) at August 5, 2004 11:22 PM
you're right, I did forget 'the deuce'.
the "i can swim" delivery reminded me of the guys from Splash: "we're not twins.."
eh, everyone should just go see the film tomorrow night at 8. or else.
Posted by: heather at August 6, 2004 03:44 PM
I also forgot "Moon Pie! It's Frozen!"
ah. good times.
Posted by: heather at August 9, 2004 06:24 AM
I couldn't get past the underwear/pyjama outfit. Some day, later, I'll try to figure out what the hell a buttleman is.
Happy happy joy joy new laptop!
Posted by: Oblivion at August 9, 2004 05:07 PM