My Review: Hateship Loveship (5/10)

"Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage."

Hateship Loveship is director Liza Johnson's followup to her debut film, Return, which I never had the opportunity to check out, but despite the fact that I wasn't very impressed with her effort in this film I do see some positive qualities in her film making. Somehow she managed to draw me into the story despite the fact that it centered on almost all unlikable or strange characters. The pacing of the film is extremely slow so you have to be patient with it, and there are also one too many relational conflicts explored which leave many undeveloped or forced moments. The romantic story felt a bit awkward and rushed, but the performances are the highlight of this film. I had never seen Kristen Wiig in a dramatic role before and I thought she gave a solid performance although her character is perhaps the quirkiest. I still enjoy her more in comedic roles, but she proves to have some versatility. Her character might seem quiet and domesticated, but she has a strong and resolute will. Guy Pierce is by far the most unlikable character as he play a carless drug addict and ex-con, but the story redeems him. Hailee Steinfeld continues to impress as a child actress and she delivers yet another solid performance. And finally you have the reliable Nick Nolte who is always a great addition to a film. Hateship Loveship has several pacing issues and an unconventional love story that will turn audiences off, but fans of Wiig will enjoy her unique character in this dramatic film.

The screenplay was adapted by Mark Poirier (Smart People) from Alice Munro's (Away from Her) short story. The main character, Johanna Perry (Kristen Wiig), is as a caregiver who has to look for a new job after the old lady she has worked for passes away. She is hired by Mr. McCauley (Nick Nolte) who wants her to take care of his granddaughter Sabatha (Hailee Steinfeld). Her mother died in a traffic accident and her father, Ken (Guy Pierce), lives in Chicago and is in no condition of taking care of her due to his drug related problems. When Johanna arrives, Ken happens to be visiting Sabatha, so the two meet and before he heads back to Chicago he leaves a thank you note for her. Sabatha gives Johanna her father's address when she asks for it so she can write him back, but Sabatha's friend, Edith (Sami Gayle) decides to play a cruel trick on her. Offering to post the letter for Johanna she keeps it and convinces Sabatha to play along and trick Johanna by corresponding with her in her father's name. Johanna begins to fall in love with Ken thinking he is the one writing her, but despite Edith's cruel trick, Johanna finds a way to redeem herself.

Despite the slow pacing, Hateship Loveship has a very important underlying theme which I found uplifting. These two characters that end up falling for each other might not have much chemistry on screen because they are not your typical couple, but what I did get out of it was the importance of not being judgmental. That is perhaps Johanna's greatest asset as she is very quiet and patient. She is treated in an unfair manner but she is determined to forgive and expect the best in the other person without judging them for their actions. Eventually that quality is what helps Ken redeem himself and find his purpose. Sometimes all the other person needs is some patience and not someone to point their finger at them. The characters in Hateship eventually become interesting although at first it might be difficult to relate with them. The ending felt a bit rushed, but I had a decent time with this movie and ended up enjoying it more than I expected to (although not nearly as much as my father did).

My Review: Detachment (8/10)

¨A child's intelligent heart can fathom the depth of many dark places, but can it fathom the delicate moment of its own detachment? ¨

Detachment is a very interesting film although I wouldn’t say it`s entertaining. It raises a lot of questions and social issues without giving many answers, but it does make us aware of many problems that our society is facing when it comes to the educational system and parents lack of involvement in it. I thought Detachment was a beautiful film and despite it being a narrative it didn’t seem like one; it is sort of poetic at times and has some great use of imagery. Adrian Brody is such a talented actor, and despite winning the Oscar for his brilliant work in The Pianist, I think he is very underrated in Hollywood. He is so good in this movie, and in my opinion it`s his best performance since The Pianist. He was one of the reasons why I wanted to see this film; the other being that it was directed by Tony Kaye, the man responsible for American History X, which is on my list of favorite films. His films are powerful, thought provoking, and Detachment is not the exception. He can make memorable films although you wouldn’t necessarily call them entertaining. In Detachment we are introduced to a very common problem: education. Kaye makes us wonder whether or not education is the teacher or parent`s responsibility. Probably both, but unfortunately neither seem to be doing a great job and our society is losing its educational battle. Kids seem to find values somewhere else and base their self worth on what their friends think of them, meanwhile parents and teachers seem to do nothing about restoring their value. Parenting and teaching are great responsibilities, and as Brody says in one of his monologues in the movie there should be prerequisites to parenting and not anyone should be allowed too.

Adrian Brody plays a substitute teacher, Mr. Barthes, who believes he has the perfect job because he doesn’t have to carry the burden of identifying or carrying for his students. He can travel from one school to another. He is a lonely, quiet, and sad man who doesn’t like attaching to anyone. He seems to have some disturbing memories about his past and doesn’t like to talk about his problems so traveling from place to place is a good way to remain detached to society. His life will change when he gets his latest assignment at a very problematic school run by Principle Carol Dearden (Marcia Gay Harden). The students in this school give the teachers a very hard time and many of them seem to be going through a living hell. Mr. Barthes identifies with some of the teachers and students here. Mr. Seaboldt (James Caan), Ms. Madison (Christina Hendricks), Ms. Perkins (Blythe Danner), Mr. Wiatt (Tim Blake Nelson), and Dr. Doris Parker (Lucy Liu) are all part of the school faculty and all seem to be going through some sort of personal hardship. Mr. Barthes begins to identify himself with some of these people like Ms. Madison who seems as lonely as he is. He also begins to give special attention to one of his students named Meredith (Betty Kaye) who despite being talented doesn’t really value herself. Another person who begins to influence Mr. Barthes is a young hooker named Erica (Sami Gayle) who he picks up from the street and begins to care for as a child. As much as Barthes wants to remain detached to people he begins to identify with many of them and without realizing it attaching to them.

Detachment has a great cast. As I mentioned before this is Adrian Brody`s best work since The Pianist, but I also have to give a lot of credit to young Sami Gayle who delivers a powerful performance as the lonely hooker who is taken advantage of and really has no self worth whatsoever. Director Kaye seems to raise this issue quite a bit since there are many characters who have little or no self value and in a way Brody`s character tries to teach them that they have value and don’t have to live based on the expectations or values given to them by others. James Caan and Christina Hendricks also give believable performances as part of the faculty. They are very different in character, but I think we all can identify them to some of the teachers we`ve had in the past. There are some very strong performances in this film and also some great dialogues. The script was written by first time screenwriter, Carl Lund, and it really is thought provoking. The imagery that Kaye uses is also very beautiful. There is a sense of claustrophobia as we see these long shots closing in on the school hallway, and emptiness when we see the abandoned classrooms. Detachment might not be an entertaining film you can watch with your friends, but it is a very interesting and thought provoking film.

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