Infinitely Polar Bear

Despite being a little too by-the-book and repetitive,"Infinetly Polar Bear" is a pleasing piece of narrative that succeeds thanks to a brilliant portrayal and definition of characters.

As stated above the film isn't that fascinating or riveting of a drama. It hits the same note again and again and does not stray away from it almost anytime. It is generally predictable and the dramatic texture isn't as intense as it wants to be,it kind of hits you very light. Moreover there are situations that are overplayed a little too much in the beginning which gave the movie a hard time at getting started and being believable, yet fortunately it picked up immediately as soon as these couple of scenes ended. So to sum it up, it simply doesn't give the necessary gravitas and intensity (both comedic and dramatic) to the situation for it to be as riveting as a drama as it could have as it could have been and I should add that I think that the cinematography partially contributed to this: it doesn't have enough style or distinction for it to stick out, leaving it in super generic dramatic territory and palette and it has a variety of camera movements that get distracting and aren't integrated well enough in the story. It could have really sparked had their been some distinctive look and approach in my opinion.

Despite all of negatives above, this movie really succeeds in making you care about the characters, sticking with them and ultimately giving you a true emotional link. That is undebatable thanks to very good work from both Saldana and Ruffalo and especially the two girls playing their daughters. But even more than that I believe that in the end it is the script that makes you really care because of how well it defines characters, situations and overall story arch. There maybe not enough originality in storytelling or some non-clarity in the bipolar aspect of the film, but man do the characters stick out and make for a pleasant view and journey, culminating in a finale that got me more than I imagined.

"Infinitely Polar Bear" (2014 release; 90 min.) brings the story of Cam Stewart (played by Mark Ruffalo) and his family. As the movie opens, we get a clever montage of 8 mm. footage from 1967 (how Cam and Maggie met in Boston and eventually married) on to the present (i.e. 1978). Cam is a manic depressive and he just got fired (again) on the first day of his latest job. It leads to an outburst and eventually Cam is put away. We then move to "six weeks later', where Cam is in a halfway house. Maggie is desperate to improve their financial situation and decides to do an MBA on a full scholarship at Columbia, leaving Cam to take care of their 2 daughters Amelia and Faith. At this point we're about 15 min. into the movie but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: first, this movie is a labor of love from writer-director Maya Forbes (best known for her work on The Larry Sanders Show). She bases the story on her own upbringing and as such the movie is pretty much autobiographical. To make things even more authentic, she cast her 12 yr. old daughter (Imogene Wolodarsky) as her younger self (Amelia). I noticed in the movie's opening credits that J.J. Abrams is one of the executive producers. Second, I don't know to what extent the portrayal of the Cam character is an accurate reflection of being manic-depressive or bi-polar. Yes, there are the highs and the lows, and yes, there is the habit/need to never throw out anything and instead collect like hamsters do, but is that enough? I do not know. But it all looks quite innocent on the big screen, and no 'bad' things happen to anyone in this. Third, the four leading acting performances (Ruffalo, Wolodarsky, Zoey Baldana as Maggie, and Ashley Aufderheide as Faith) are all enjoyable, and the interaction between them feels authentic. Fourth, the movie, set in the late 70s, contains a treasure trove of period cars from the 60s and 70s. Check out the Peugot station wagon Cam has at some point, but that's just one example. Truly a eye candy for car aficionados. Last but not least, there is a terrific soundtrack, including both the original score (by Theodore Shapiro) and a bunch of songs (best of all, George Harrison's Run of the Mill, which plays at the conclusion of the movie and over the closing credits; and also China Forbes (of Pink Martini, and sister of Maya Forbes) bringing an excellent new tune called "The Northern Line", also playing over the closing credits).

This movie made quite a splash at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. No idea why it's taken another 18 months for this to get a national release. "Infinitely Polar Bear" opened some weeks ago at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and apparently is enjoying a good run. The recent early evening screening where I saw this at was attended nicely. If you are in the mood for something that could be quite heavy but in fact is brought with a light touch and a smile never far away, and you want to see something light years away from Hollywood's standard summer fare of action heroes, I might suggest you give this a try, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.

'INFINITELY POLAR BEAR': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A comedy-drama flick, about a bipolar dad, struggling to raise his two young daughters; while his wife tries to support their family, in business school. The film was written and directed by Maya Forbes; and it's based on her own life experiences (as a young girl, with a bipolar father). The movie stars Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky and Ashley Aufderheide. It's an interesting, and well made film study; on mental illness, and how it effects loved ones.

The story takes place in late 1970s Boston. Cameron Stuart (Ruffalo) is married to Maggie; and they have two young daughters together, Amelia (Wolodarsky) and Faith (Aufderheide). When Cameron has a bipolar breakdown, he's fired from his job and put in a mental hospital. Maggie moves their daughters into a cheap apartment, in a poor part of town. When Cameron is released from the hospital, Maggie asks him to take care of their kids; while she goes to business school, in New York full time. Cameron agrees, and then struggles to maintain his sanity; while also trying to be a good father.

The film is a great examination of bipolar disease; and how mental illness effects family. Ruffalo is exceptional in the lead, and the two young girls are outstanding (as well); especially Wolodarsky, playing Forbes (as a young girl). Forbes' script is clever, and very thoughtful. Her direction is decent, but not anything too memorable. Still, it's a pretty impressive directorial debut.

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This film tells the story of a man with bipolar disorder, who has to take care of two children while having unstable mental state.

I find "Infinitely Polar Bear" a realistic and in depth look into the life of a bipolar man. It shows his over-talkative state, his over- friendly personality and the disorganised home. The interaction between him and his children is touching, especially the fact that they accepted the father's embarrassing behaviour. Even if his behaviour is eccentric, he is portrayed to have the best intentions. The wife's support is also very touching. I find that this film is a positive and supportive portrayal of a man with a serious illness.

Living with a bipolar father proves difficult for two young girls when their mother has to move away to study in this comedy-drama blend set in the 1970s. The title comes from the youngest daughter misnaming her father's condition as "polar bear" - thematically relevant as the overall film is about the two girls learning to accept their father's behaviour beyond their own preconceptions, appreciating what he does do well. From such a description, the film might sound overly sweet, and in a way it is, only ever seeming to skim the surface, focusing only on how embarrassed the girls are by their father's inability to integrate into society. There are a couple of moments in which the girls genuinely seem afraid of what their father might do, but the film never tugs at the full experience of living with someone with mental issues; as others have said, Mark Ruffalo comes off as more an everyday eccentric than a manic depressive. That said, Ruffalo's performance is the film's best asset, frequently communicating a genuine interest to bond with his daughters and care for them in small, subtle ways. His facial expressions and movements convey more than his dialogue and it is easy to feel for his frustration at not being able to be everything that his daughters want. It is much harder to reconcile the film's blanket negative attitude to the US public school system throughout, but it does act as an acceptable symbol of all that the girls' parents are worried about, and the film does offer an acute portrait of parents doing what they can for their offspring, even if it falls short in other areas.