Der Zufallslover

Maybe it was the great, eclectic soundtrack with the likes of Django Reinhardt, Herbie Hancock, Perry Como, Curtis Mayfield, Neil Young and Richie Havens, or maybe it was the dark and subtle bits of humor that pleasantly surprised me throughout the movie, but I really enjoyed this one.

We meet Tom, a forlorn twenty-something man-child still living at home and struggling to take control of his life, played by David Schwimmer of "Friends" fame. Tom gets a call from a woman who mistakenly believes he knew her recently deceased son. He goes along with it, presumably to save her the added grief of knowing her son had no close friends. Of course, Tom's accommodating nature backfires and he's asked to give the eulogy for a man he never knew. This sets up a scene with the kind of dark humor seen throughout the movie that audiences are either delighted with or immediately turned off by.

At the funeral, Tom meets Julie, his unrequited high school crush, played with genuine emotion and winsome grace by Gwyneth Paltrow. Thus begins two relationships that play out over the duration of the film --one with Grace, the bereft mother of the friend Tom never had, played by Barbara Hershey, and the other with Julie.

Yes, this movie owes much, in terms of plot and characters, to "The Graduate," with Hershey playing the counterpart to Anne Bancroft's Mrs. Robinson. But it turns out to be much more than just an update of the '60s classic. The audience really gets to know the inner turmoil both Tom and Julie are going through -- Tom, both for the guilt of becoming unwittingly involved with Grace, and for also being involved with Julie at the same time, and Julie, for being torn between striking out on her own to escape her overbearing parents and getting into a deep relationship with Tom.

There are a couple of sideplots going on with Tom's friends -- Michael Rapaport's character getting married to a woman his friends don't like, and Michael Vardan's married character, making a move on Julie, which obviously infuriates Tom. And Carol Kane as Tom's mom, is precious. In one scene, he is livid after she bursts into his room unannounced. After she receives a brief scolding for not knocking, she replies "I only wanted to see if you wanted some ice cream," to which he replies "A little."

Schwimmer nails the role, with his underplayed, tacit sadness about his so-far-failed attempt at making a responsible life for himself. And Paltrow, well, can she ever miss? Whether for the dark humor, spot-on acting, or superb soundtrack, this one is definitely worth a viewing.

Maybe you need low expectations to enjoy anything about this movie--I actually had very few at all except that I remember it being called a "dark comedy"at the time of its release. Well, dark comedies can be very well done and extremely funny, Doctor Strangelove and Harold and Maude come to mind. Unfortunately "The Pallbearer" doesn't deliver--there are some moments which are undeniably funny, though the eulogy mentioned in the tag line wasn't one of them. The plot is a little thin to hang a movie on, in fact it might have been better done as an episode of "Friends," about twenty minutes could have handled the whole thing.

There's an immense amount of filler here--long, excruciating shots of David Schwimmer and his goofy expression as he tries to pretend he knows the poor loser from high school, recently deceased, that he can't remember, but is asked to act as pallbearer for.

Everyone in this movie seems to be in one form of pain or another--Paltrow keeps repeating how she "has to leave," but really doesn't explain why, in fact part of the plot seems to be her inability to explain why. Those who like romantic comedies should stay away, for those who like just plain dark comedies might want to look elsewhere as well; question is whether a couple of funny moments in an otherwise dull bleak movie is worth the time.

This is a romantic comedy about a young man who is thrown through a roller coaster when he is asked to be a pallbearer at the funeral of a high school classmate he doesn't remember, and, in the process, runs into his high school crush.

As with many romantic comedies, in this movie, people meet, date, fall in love, make love, break-up and try to go on with their lives. There is a lack of suspense and intrigue in this movie, but some character development and heartfelt moments. The mediocre acting, though, made this a not-so-funny flick. If you're a fan of romantic comedies, it won't hurt to look for others.

Grade D+

This 1996 flick was directed and co-written by Matt Reeves along with Jason Katims. A sort of serious romantic comedy. I loved Barbara Hershey in this. She never disappoints. Playing the mother of a son she lost, she turns to companionship to help heal the loss. David Schwimmer, Ross in FRIENDS, helps her out. Schwimmer does an admirable job as a young man, almost a virgin in relationships.

Then he meets the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow and sparks begin to fly. So, the plot thickens when he's up against the two ladies in his life. Add another lady, Carol Kane, his mother, who does a brilliant job as she fawns over her son. She's a riot and brings what little comedy there is to the movie.

Friends to Schwimmer are played by Michael Rapaport as a groom to be, with advice for his friend, and Michael Vartan, who I have liked since THE NEXT BEST THING. They both add much to this movie.

Not really a comedy, as the acting is quite real and often touching, but enjoyable to watch the two stars in the leads and an excellent supporting cast.

Although I am watching this movie at this moment I am certain it is stable enough to comment on. The film is somewhat of a parody on relationships and relationship movies. The acting, scenes and writing are quite good. At some times this movie makes points, however it is mostly a silly movie to be enjoyed. More a movie to mellow on, it would be best to rent other films and use this film in between blockbusters. Pleasant would best describe this film with easy music and nice scenes and lots of scene changes it carries well. Somewhat nostalgic in feeling. A special mix here is the good fortune of Tom Thompson (David Schwimmer) that his actions are always amplified as altruistic. Be sure not to expect this to be the "everything, drivemecrazy" film because it is not, yet in this film everything plays off of Tom who as all fabled heroes may have his troubles when others realize his true actions. Some sexual content with very little violence.