Man in the Chair

I attended the World Premiere of "Man in the Chair" at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Good films should be bold and provocative. Yet no director creates a genre out of whole cloth. There's a basic dichotomy there and it's the challenge of the filmmaker to put a new spin on an old theme. "Man in the Chair" is, on the face of it, an intergenerational coming-of-age drama. You know the drill -- young buck meets old codger, ice meets flame, and water flows happily ever after. Some commonality brings each halfway towards the other and there are likely a few laughs as well as tears along the way. But something takes place here that is unexpected. Questions are raised which have not been addressed in contemporary cinema. This is a movie with a message, and in a politically correct world where feature filmmakers feel that it's not their place to rock the boat, "Man in the Chair" dares to tackle major social issues in a surprisingly entertaining fashion.

The young buck in this case is Cameron Kincaid (Michael Angarano), a high school kid with a passion for classic movies. The old codger is Glenn "Flash" Madden (Christopher Plummer), the last living crew member of "Citizen Kane." Cameron is a good kid. He just happens to do bad things. Flash is surly to bed and surly to rise, which makes him, well, surly. The two meet in a darkened theater while both while away the hours to pre-Technicolor gems of days gone by, one lamenting his past and the other dreaming of his future. But the kid has a sense of purpose -- an opportunity to win a scholarship to film school by shooting a 10 minute short. And thus begins the dance. Will the two forge a working relationship? Will it become something else? And what will be the subject of the student film, and what wonders will be discovered along the way? Those are just a few of the questions to be answered. Perhaps more important, though, are the questions raised by "Man in the Chair" -- are there people who don't matter? If there are wrongs to be made right, can anyone do it? Should we? That's a tall order for a filmmaker and writer/director Michael Schroeder accepts the challenge.

The legendary Christopher Plummer shows how he got to be so. His portrayal of the aging old gaffer, whose only joys in life are Cuban cigars and Wild Turkey, is daring and heartbreaking. How the Motion Picture Academy could have overlooked him all these years is a mystery, but that could change in a "Flash," and should. It's hard to imagine how an actor as young as Michael Angarano could hold the screen with him from start to finish and have it all look so real. The fact that he does so with such ease is testament to the fact he is arguably the most sought after teenage actor in America.

The Motion Picture Retirement Home is the setting for a good portion of the film (the first time a camera crew has ever been allowed to film there), where an ensemble of other Hollywood veterans put their hearts and souls into this, and it shows. M. Emmett Walsh is a standout in this and almost steals the film. I was stunned when he first appeared on screen. What he did was about the bravest thing any actor can do, particularly at his age, and his performance is breathtaking. In fact, as Schroeder explained in the Q&A, other actors turned it down because it would have broken their hearts to do the role.

"Man in the Chair" has the look and feel of a cutting edge indie, with a surprisingly rockin' soundtrack that left me wanting more and dazzling visuals. Cinematographer Dana Gonzales used quadruple exposure and hand crank camera to create a look that says "special effects" but is actually all "in-camera." What you see is what was captured on film and not created digitally in a studio. To do otherwise wouldn't be true to the very subject matter, and these techniques are a tip of the hat to the first filmmakers who had nothing but their cameras and lenses to create what we see on screen. There were more than a few "whoa" moments in the theater. I sat in wonder at the creativity of this team.

It's hard to imagine anyone of any age not being able to relate to this film and be moved by it. "Man in the Chair" is so groundbreaking that it has the potential to be a modern-day "Grapes of Wrath." The storyline exposes the ills of society without being preachy or heavy-handed. It tugs at the emotions like few films I've seen in recent memory. If you're not surly to bed and surly to rise you'll surely walk out with a tear in your eye. And even if you are, maybe, just maybe, you'll have a change of heart.

I'd heard some good things about this film but not from trusted sources and having seen it i can't agree. Man in the Chair is a very average film. It is not terrible compelling to watch and is very obvious in its plotting. The dialogue is also often laughably bad and the awful caricature performance it features representing Orson Welles is insulting both to Mr Welles and to the viewer's intelligence.

It sets the tone for narrative drag immediately with an extended clip (first heard off screen and then shown) clip from Howard Hawks' superb comedy His Girl Friday, which serves no real purpose in the story other than to establish 'Flash' Madden goes to see old movies! Great insight! A piece of info that is perfectly well introduced with a later seen at the same theatre showing Touch Of Evil which serves a narrative purpose both in its introduction of the two lead characters to each other; their similar tastes; and the link to Welles whom 'Flash' has worked with on Citizen Kane. The use of His Girl Friday however is entirely unnecessary and too lengthy; and as with most of the other films it references, only highlights the fact that the writer can recognise a variety of well-written great films - making it the more perplexing that he has no ear for how staged and hammy his dialogue is.

Plummer is solid as 'Flash' but loses his way here and there in stereotype and overplaying - a fault of the script not his, but an actor of his skill should have been able to instruct the director/writer better on how to play it. Given how extraordinary Plummer can be - just watch his Mike Wallace in The Insider - i expected better. Michael Angarano is fine but is again saddled with a poorly written role that makes him a rebel that he never seems and then connects him to 'Flash' in the most tenuous way.

M Emmet Walsh however is marvellous in a supporting role and while i'm sure the average standard of the film and the grandstanding of Plummer in the lead will cause him to be overlooked it would be wonderful and justified if this great character actor saw a supporting actor nod at the Oscars.

Overall the film is inoffensive and has a noble heart and message but the script is lacking in substance and drive. A Sunday afternoon on the TV type of watch.

Michael Schroeder's new movie should have taken him out of B-movie obscurity. The director of the two "Cyborg" sequels has finally grasped some serious material, but unfortunately he hasn't let go of the cheese from his previous films.

The story trails lonesome, alienated Michael- a movie buff who wants to win a film scholarship, which is available through a student video competition. His torrid home life and nonexistent social life start to weigh down his dream of becoming a filmmaker. By chance, he meets a cranky old man named Flash (played very well by Christopher Plummer) who has connections to Orson Welles and the golden age of cinema.

"The Man in the Chair" begins with a montage featuring some Tony Scott-type mock handcrank shots. It's a questionably flashy beginning, but it creates a serious tone that allows you to take it seriously. This tone is betrayed immediately when Michael is introduced. He is bullied in an unrealistic, Nickelodeon-worthy fashion. What is particularly jarring is when he jumps on top of the bully's car with his bicycle (!?). Immediately, the movie turns into an artificial and inept after school special.

As a result, much is wasted. The cinematography by experienced Hollywood camera operator Dana Gonzales is absolutely beautiful, but the handcrank shots (added as reference to classic cinema) become distracting and irritating. However, there is crisp lighting and some impressively done sequences. Great performances by Plummer, Mitch Pileggi and M. Emmet Walsh are marred by the campiness of the screenplay. This is an unfortunate movie that didn't deserve any of the talent it attracted.

The real problem with "Man in the Chair" is its utter lack of credibility. This is an optimistic story that is full of good cheer, but it tries to get by on its likability alone. Truly important details, like believability and honesty are half-attempted. The development of Michael consists of platitudinous and insincere movie references. Michael is a cardboard "cinephile" with no depth, just a poorly developed passion. One character gets into trouble with the law, but this is shown with very little long-run consequence. The movie tries to avoid clichés that would be seen as "too Hollywood" to the point that it feels like a self-conscious Hollywood movie. The lack of honesty is not only appalling, it is embarrassing.

The clichés don't stop. The generation-gap jokes between Flash and Michael are tired and mostly unfunny. Also, there is far too much similarity to "Finding Forrester" to acknowledge this movie as even marginally original. There are countless plot conveniences filled with poorly thought out logic. Schroeder skims on plot details, making the movie lose respectability with every scene.

This is a feel good movie that seems to be aimed at idiots. Schroeder's film may have been passable as a mid-90's Disney movie, (minus some useless foul language inserted for a "hard edge") but he doesn't realize that American audiences have moved on from absolute characters and feel-good clichés. Unfortunately, Schroeder hasn't left his B-movie tendencies behind. Maybe he should stick to the straight to video shelf.

I am a judge for the Indianapolis-based Heartland Film Festival. This feature film is a Crystal Heart Award Winner and is eligible to be the Grand Prize Winner in October of 2007. The Heartland Film Festival is a non-profit organization that honors Truly Moving Pictures. A Truly Moving Picture "…explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life."

This is a story of two unusual and non-conformist people. The first is a curmudgeon or surly old man, played by Christopher Plummer, and the second is a troubled high school junior. What they have in common is that they live in the same neighborhood in L.A. and they love movies, especially old classics.

The old man used to be a gaffer or electrician and made many movies at Hollywood studios, but now he is alone in the Motion Picture Residence of the Elderly. He is scruffy, a drunk, cynical, sarcastic and loudly and proudly acts badly. After he gets into an argument with patrons at a movie theater proclaiming, "I made more movies than you've been to", the junior follows him to his old age home.

The junior wants to submit a short film to a contest that hopefully can get him a college scholarship. So he begins his quest to get help from the old man. The junior has serious adjustment problems. He challenges a high school gang leader and continually gets in trouble with the law for fighting and stealing. At home, he has a terrible relationship with his stepfather.

However, there is a goodness and decency in these two people and they slowly and painfully bring out the best in each other. For them, the journey is more important than a successful outcome. They simply both need a purpose to their lives.

The acting is remarkable and not just from Christopher Plummer, who dominates the movie. M. Emmet Walsh and Robert Wagner are particularly convincing. There are unusual, funky visuals and a hip sound track throughout the movie. They really work to hold your attention because they are such a contrast to the many elderly characters. This is a very different and very good movie.

FYI – There is a Truly Moving Pictures web site where there is a listing of past Truly Moving Picture Award winners that are now either at the theater or available on video.

This is an incredible film. Please let every one know, especially if you're in the industry, what an incredible performer Christopher Plummer is. He provides an Oscar quality performance. M. Emmet Walsh is also outstanding.

Americans in general, and Hollywood in specific have been reluctant to vocalize the challenges of aging in our society. It was wonderful to see this issue handled in such a positive fashion. The supporting cast more than compliments this picture and demonstrates the existing talent in Hollywood's elderly community.

Highly recommended.