Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot

I found it to be a strangely dark comedy. Or rather it was funny despite the subject manner.

So technically a true story about a man named John Callahan who was an alcoholic and became paralyzed in a car accident because of his addiction to the bottle, but ends up living his best life due to his involvement with alcoholics anonymous.

So maybe not so dark now that I think about it as the story was uplifting and inspiring.

Joaquin Phoenix was a pleasure to see on the screen. Very lively and believable as a man chasing some demons, but keeping his sense of humor and positive attitude.

And we needed that liveliness as some of the 12 steps in the movie were not that flush out as well as others.

Gus Van Sant's ability to do such a serious content and give it to us in a humorous way makes for an Impressive film.

The most impressive thing about this film is the acting, most notably Jonah Hill in a masterful supporting performance.

I'm not even sure what I liked about this film. I almost turned it off around the 30 minute-mark. But it somehow got under my skin. Combined with the powerful, convincing performances by all involved (in particular Joaquin Phoenix), I couldn't really look away.

It centers around John Callahan, a cartoonist (played by Phoenix) who is left wheelchair-bound following a drunk car accident. It follows his journey to sobriety through AA, and ultimate path to redemption, forgiveness and all the usual feel-good stuff. It has a heavy dose of depressive darkness thrown in too. Despite being oddly inspiring in nature, it doesn't follow the typical "inspirational true story" format and never feels contrived in its delivery.

There is a lot of dark humour and rare units among the characters here, which make it an entertaining ride. The structure of the film is absolutely all over the place though. It leaves the viewer feeling as in an alcoholic haze themselves, which is perhaps effective, if not frustrating and making for difficult viewing.

Jonah Hill and Joaquin Phoenix had great chemistry, and I really enjoyed any scene with Rooney Mara, which took on an almost angelic heavenly vibe. Jack Black was Jack Black. The "forgiveness" scenes were among the best and the AA meetings were also done effectively.

As someone approaching 10 years of sobriety myself, there was a lot to keep me engaged and many thought-provoking themes, lines and scenes. Recommend for those after something different or anyone after a true acting masterclass.

Gus Van Sant directs this beautiful film about John Callahan, alcoholic turned cripple turned cartoonist.

The heart of this story is truly inspiring. It is deep down a story about the darkest corner of the human spirit, and how through faith we can overcome anything.

Van Sant is not a very flashy director. However there is a few questioning choices he made with this film. First off, the structure of the movie is very non linear, especially at the start. This creates a rather jarring experience, and it often results in lessening the impact of what is shown. The film gets more straightforward in the second half and it picks up big time.

Another thing that is odd is the manifestation of the protagonist's mother. The effect they chose to fade her face into the frame is simply bad. It just looks awful and the whole scene feels like a stain on the film. Also the film is filled with these weird zoom in shots that looks unappealing. It is something to get use to. It's not that it's a big deal, but it looks strange, and I fail to see the purpose of these zoom in and out.

Beside these few issues, Van Sant mostly lay low and let the actors act, and they do it beautifully. At this point it is not a surprise to anyone, but Joaquin Phoenix is fantastic in this. He elevates the material to tear jerking and meaningful. He just becomes the character. Between this and You Were Never Really Here, he is guaranteed to be nominated.

Jonah Hill proves again that he is a true artist with a single scene near the ending of the film. Before that he owns every scene he has, especially the first time Callahan meets him. He has this sincere goodness and nonchalance about his character. He really nails it.

Jack Black is also great in the film. At first it seems that he is just playing his usual funny dude character, but later in the film he has a great emotional scene. Although it is very short he just shows a whole new side of him.

Rooney Mara's performance is also great, but her character is somewhat problematic. When she first arrives, she is just like an angel, beautiful, caring and funny. It is just hard to believe that she actually exists in this universe. I understand that she helps greatly Callahan to keep faith, so that might be why she is so pretty, and charming and innocent, but it still feels like she is out of place in the film. Not her fault though.

Even though the first half suffered a bit from weird editing and jumping around a lot in time, the second half made up for it. It is more than a simple drama, it becomes meaningful. The pain that Callahan feels is so relatable. After watching him go through everything he did, and knowing that he truly existed, it just inspired me to be better. To conquer my own pain and torment and to just accept who I am as a person. It is not often that a film provoke such an emotional reaction out of me. Also I nearly cried twice, which is even more unusual.

Overall this is a great movie that dealt brilliantly with the theme of overcoming our pain and suffering no matter how insurmountable it seems.

Rating: 8/10

From a technical viewpoint, very well executed - lighting and Cinematography were excellent. As for writing - every character in this is so well conveyed that the actors are able to do the story justice. Joaquin Phoenix did an excellent job as expected - both him and Jonah Hill really showed some emotional range in their roles. Rooney Mara's performance was great and her chemistry with Mr. Callahan was palpable; although not nearly as much so as Mr. Callahan's screen chemistry with Donny. Even the time Jack Black and Joaquin have on screen together is magical - and weirdly enough I don't think they could've cast anyone better for Jack Black's character.

The movie ended up being more of an exploration of 12 step program than I expected, but by the end it actually gave me deeper insight and understanding of those struggling with alcoholism who seek help. Knowing tons of people who've gone through the program (recurring ones and success stories) it's given me a slightly deeper appreciation for anyone's struggle/experience.