Off the Black - Gioco Forzato

I recently rented Off the Black and was pleasantly surprised how good it was considering it had not gotten much recognition in media coverage or advertisements. I find it to be another quality independent film that unfortunately seemed to slip under the radar or fall through cracks. Not only is it a finely directed tale from first time director James Ponsoldt, but the acting performances by Nolte, Morgan, and Hutton are stellar. One might expect such performances by the veterans Nolte and Hutton, but the way Morgan held his own scene for scene with these icons shows his versatility and promise as a coming of age actor soon to be recognized by all as a talented force. I thought he looked familiar so after investigating I realized he was in Mean Creek and also had a fairly long list of credits, including starring opposite Vanessa Redgrave in Rumor of Angels (another great film and another fine performance for Morgan). I am looking forward to seeing Pondsoldt's next film and the what the future holds for Morgan!

Off the Black (2006)

A heartfelt, small film with two big performances. Nick Nolte certainly plays a role here as a troubled, unhealthy, good-hearted man that many might think is the real Nick Nolte, judging from the media. He's an umpire for high school baseball games, and he loves the game, and the kids, but he's such a curmudgeon and a drunk no one realizes his devotion. This drives him to seclusion and sadness.

A couple of chance events combine to get him in sync with a young pitcher, played with real charm and ease by Trevor Morgan who has been very active as a low profile child actor (including a role in "The Sixth Sense"). So this odd pairing of a flailing older man and a lonely and yearning 17 year old is about how people need each other and come to help each other even when they don't quite know why.

The story, by director James Ponsoldt, is interesting enough to keep you engaged, if not wholly convinced. It does follow some clichéd paths of conflict and resolution, including a little sentimentality, but it works. What really holds it all together, though, is Nolte. At first you think he's overplaying, then maybe (oddly) underplaying (since you might think it's just Nolte being Nolte). But there is a lot of subtlety to his movements and his face, and real feeling. It's worth seeing for him, if you are the type to enjoy that kind of specific appreciation.

It's also enjoyable in other ways, including a series of rather searing if brief appearances by Timothy Hutton. Good stuff, if not especially original or brilliant in the larger sense.

This low-key character study, mixing humor and depression to a tender effect, paints a picture of this odd coupling between an elderly bitter drunk and the teenage pitcher responsible for vandalizing his property with a fairly charming success rate. Off the Black is a noteworthy minor work that completely thrives off of the gruff charisma lead Nick Nolte injects into an otherwise typically off-beat, indie-mannered screenplay dabbling in peculiar friendship. The script, while appealing enough to attract the likes of a fine actor such as Nolte (a fact rendered even more impressive given it is a first time feature effort from newcomer James Ponsoldt), really would not have been able to shine unless this perfect spot of casting had fallen into place.

The movie works, and works best, only when Nolte's scenery chewing antics are present, and in retrospect, the entire piece, while gracefully dealing in issues of family, isolationism, and connectivity, is really just a 90 minute excuse for one of America's bona fide talents to flex his considerable sandpaper-throated heft around in a role that was clearly conceived with him in mind. It is not so much Nolte's outstanding talent as a diversified actor that has made him survive and stay relevant these few decades as it has been his continuing effort to refine his natural instincts to help make his character's all seem completely believable and unquestionably human. With his continued approach for taking lower profile but higher developed material as of late, this performance continues the respectably eclectic, under-the-radar winning streak with a front and center take that puts the legend square in his element. Add the believable high school sensitivities from costar Trevor Morgan into the mix and we have a pleasing relationship movie with some dynamics that really work.

So where does Off the Black fail? Quite simply in all other scenes not showcasing these two main characters together. Ponsoldt tries to detail the reality behind the young man's life with little success, instead falling prey to the usual pratfalls of underdeveloped subplot and supporting roles. Directed in a straightforward way though at times impressively framed, any immersion garnered throughout the modest film will remain Nick Nolte's chief responsibility.

I attended the East Coast Premiere of "Off the Black" at the Woodstock Film Festival. Having greatly anticipating seeing this film since I'd first heard about it over a year ago, and knowing a bit about the story as well as the cast and crew, my expectations were admittedly a bit higher than usual. Yet I tried to put away any preconceived notions I'd developed over time. I walked in with a clean slate. And not only was I not disappointed, but I was actually somewhat shocked. The experience of seeing "Off the Black" did what very few films have done this year; it left me with a tear in my eye and a smile on my face. I sat through over 30 films in Toronto waiting for that happen, and it did, just once. This was my first film here at Woodstock and it got me good.

Within seconds, literally, we are introduced to young Dave Tibbel (Trevor Morgan). He's standing on the pitcher's mound, sweat beaded on his brow, studying the catcher's signals. His face completely fills the screen, as if the director is saying, "here you go. If you don't like what you see, this will be tough for you. If you do, sit back and watch the story develop." The story is that of a relationship between Dave and someone else, of course. But that someone is no blonde bombshell or voluptuous vixen. The other half of that relationship is Ray Cook (Nick Nolte), the ump standing behind home plate. But this is not "Brokeback Baseball," no, although surely that may enter your mind. It's something else. It's something rarely explored in American cinema, and it's bold and daring. It's a love story -- a good old-fashioned romance between two individuals who just happen to be male, and it's totally platonic. "Is this possible?" you may ask. It sure is, and "Off the Black" will prove it to you.

This film is made with passion and care. The soft, natural lighting of the interiors allows the full mystery of the characters to flourish. Single point lighting allows interplay of light and shadow which echoes the bright and dark sides of Dave and Ray, as well as the family members who surround them. Dave's father Tom (Timothy Hutton), withdrawn and distant. Sister Ashley (Sonia Feigelson), on the cusp of adulthood, gawky and afraid. All have secrets to tell, but don't, or won't, or can't. Cinematographer Tim Orr manages to find beauty in every little thing -- contrails, dripping gutters, siding and eaves and gently sloping roofs. And the countryside -- oh my. The lush scenery of the Catskills is indescribable. As Ponsoldt pointed out in the Q&A after the screening, the setting is supposed to be his Georgia home. But it could be anywhere where sea and sky and small towns predominate. Some of the shots are literally breathtaking. I found myself gasping several times. But what tugged at my heart even more was the sparse, almost homespun soundtrack. Punctuated by the occasional train whistle in the distance, the music never distracted, never shouted, "this is important." The contrast between the beauty of the setting and the ugliness of the fractured individuals who populate it is stark. It is on this canvas that writer/director James Ponsoldt, in his first feature, crafts a work of art that is simply one of the most poignant love stories imaginable. Those who've read my comments before know that I dislike traditional reviews because they invariably give too much away. It's easy to find a synopsis of the film so I won't do that here. But in many love stories, the protagonists meet, get tangled in tension and deception, and finally fall in love. Occasionally that's followed by breakup and tragedy. Those aren't my words -- they are those of Ponsoldt in the Q&A after the film, who said that he actually wrote the film as a romantic love story. It just happened to be played by two male actors and is platonic.

To be honest, the film can be hard to watch at times. Nolte's portrayal of the seldom sober Ray is unsettling and painful, like a bad toothache that you can't wait to be pulled. Morgan's sensitive, vulnerable, sad-eyed Dave is like a puppy cowering beneath Ray's rolled up newspaper. But the bravado falls away on Ray's part, the sarcastic self-confidence and humor emerges from Dave, and the boy who needs a father draws closer to the man who needs a son. Finally, what makes this film so joyful to watch is the interplay between the two. It is all so natural that it seemed unscripted. As it turned out, much of it was. In reply to my question during the Q&A regarding how much was improvised, Ponsoldt not so surprisingly admitted that he gave free reign to Nolte and Morgan quite often, and some of the best lines in the film were theirs and theirs alone. And only the best directors are willing to step back and let that happen. And only the best actors can pull it off. Most will not be surprised at Nolte's performance -- he is, after all, a veteran if there ever was one. But "Off the Black" could be the vehicle which puts Trevor Morgan on filmgoers' radar, if it's not already. I'd seen his work before (He was Ponsoldt's first choice, largely based on his performance in the indie classic "Mean Creek"), but he carries this film so confidently and easily that I left the theater shaking my head in wonderment. And a tear in my eye and a smile on my face. "Off the Black" will do that to you.

The third time is the charm for James Ponsoldt, writer, director and actor in a really touching indie film that everyone can relate to. Maybe that is why it died at the box office after a few weeks without really making it big. It's a story that we can all find a piece of ourselves in.

Ray's life is in the crapper. he runs a junkyard by day and comes home to a house where he lives with an ugly dog and they both drown their sorrows in beer. He umps the local games and know that is just asking for trouble.

After the local team loses their chance at the State playoff, he catches one teen who papers his house. This teen's mom has run off and his day is pretty much dead to the world. The two- Ray and Dave - hit it off and Ray becomes a surrogate dad, while Dave becomes a surrogate son.

It's funny, tender, and sad. It will make you think about your own life and count your friends - or make some if you don't have enough.