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Greetings again from the darkness. We all recognize the genius of Philip Seymour Hoffman the actor. This gives us one more example of his immense talent, but also puts his eye as a first time director on display. Not surprisingly, he comes through extremely well.

Based on the play by Bob Glaudini, three of the four main characters reprise their role from the stage production. Mr. Hoffman as Jack, John Ortiz as Clyde and Daphne Rubin-Vega as Clyde's wife, Lucy. The newcomer is the fantastic Amy Ryan ("The Office")as Connie. Jack and Clyde work together as limo drivers. Lucy and Connie work together for some odd funeral home specialist who markets some type of unexplained program.

All that really matters is that Clyde and Lucy arrange to have Connie and Jack meet. The apparent reason is that neither of them have any friends or social skills. What we then learn is that all four of these people are fractured. Scene after scene shows off the power of friendship and/or the faulty side of on-the-job relationship therapy borough about by cheating and secrets.

For the most part, the film has the feel of a stage production and moves very slowly as these type of people would. There are moments where individual weakness gives way to outbursts of emotions - and not all in a positive way. What is clear is that they each want the best for each other, but have no real feel for what's best for themselves.

I thought the film made some excellent points, but I was a bit disappointed in the hookah scene. That was the only scene that went too far and my guess is it worked better on stage. On the bright side, there are some tender, poignant moments and the acting is truly superb throughout the film. It is obvious that these four actors care very much for the story and these characters.

I was fortunate enough to see this movie a few days early in eastern Manhattan. Of course I had to deal with a frustrating (talkative) audience but I not only saw a great little film, I got to see the whole cast do a little q&A session with Peter Travers afterward.

We know the plot. An awkward man meets an awkward girl both surrounded by a couple who has a lot of problems with their marriage but don't mind bottling it in at the moment. Jack (Hoffman) is very lovable. You feel for him and he wins your hearts from his first swimming lesson with his best friend Clyde (John Ortiz). Clyde's wife Lucy(Daphne Rubin-Vega) introduces Jack to her co-worker and friend Connie (amy Ryan). Jack and Connie actually hit it off right off the bat. Connie enjoyed telling ridiculous stories such as her father being in a coma (trust me, there is a lot more to that story - had the audience roaring) but means well and wants to pursue a relationship very slowly with Jack. Jack so gentle that he'll wait till the summer to go on their first date if needed for the relationship.

This cast was very good. For those who like them Oscars, Hoffman should get an acting nomination. Though is uncomfortable behavior might get a but repetitive, you still can't keep your eyes off of him. Him and Ryan shined with excellent chemistry. The supporting cast were also great.

The direction of the film was remarkable. Hoffman is a natural but also brought some new ideas. One scene was so beautiful. Jack and Clyde were sitting in the car. Clyde started to get things off his chest in such a emotional way. Something that would secretly hurt Jack. A plow comes by and pushes dirt on the windshield. After Clyde is about done ranting, Jack hits the windshield wipers. It clears the snow but little drops of water still move down the windshield. Because the camera is shot from the back, the windshield was almost a reflection of both of the character's faces as if they were tearing up. So many great shots. I love when Hoffman is underwater and I love his little dream sequences.

I really enjoyed the film. a great study of characters. Hoffman said he'd love to direct another film if given another great cast. 7.5/10.

"You've never been in a relationship for any length of time. A lot happens."

Jack Goes Boating is a raw, hard to categorize directorial debut for Philip Seymour Hoffman, adapted from the play of the same title. 

I guess if I had to assign it a genre, it would be indie drama. The story follows the hesitantly blossoming relationship between Jack (Hoffman) and Connie (Amy Ryan), and the rocky, established relationship of their friends Clyde (John Ortiz) and Lucy (Daphne Rubin-Vega). 

Jack Goes Boating reminded me of Two Lovers in some ways. It involves flawed people making decisions that aren't always the wisest ones, and dealing with things in their past that make their current relationships more difficult. 

Don't expect this to be romantic or cutesy, it attempts to go for the "realistic" angle, with all the problems and realities that come with real adult relationships. That's derailed a bit by the occasionally awkward dialogue and characters that aren't really as fleshed out as they needed to be. We don't get much of a sense of who they used to be or what their past was like, and that would have added to the movie immensely. It's somewhat difficult to put into context the characters as they are now, without that information.  

Still, I think this was a pretty decent debut from Hoffman. He's clearly in the process of learning what works from the other side of the camera, and it's puzzling why they didn't adjust the odd, romance novel-like dialogue in some places, but overall, Jack Goes Boating hints at a promising future. There are some poignant moments that really stuck out, to me. Fans of Hoffman and Ryan (count me as both) should check it out.

This film is a tale of two couples in New York, whose love and betrayal unfold as their friendship progresses.

As a drama about the relationship between four people, you would expect the characters to be interesting, dynamic and simply alive. However, in "Jack Goes Boating", the characters are not sculpted or portrayed in the way that makes you care about them. None of them are interesting or sympathetic. There is little chemistry between the characters, seeing them in one room together is more like them having separate monologues about different topics. There is simply no connection between the characters, also between characters and viewers. The dialogs are bland and boring. The pacing is so slow that almost nothing happens in the 85 minutes of screen time. "Jack Goes Boating" to me is an abysmal failure.

After being set up on a blind date by his friends, Jack (Hoffman) promises to take Connie (Ryan) boating. Jack then begins to do everything he can to prove how much he like Connie. There are movies that come out that are 99% special effects and 1% acting, some are good but no matter who plays the parts it doesn't affect the movie. This one is the opposite. The story itself is one that has been done 1,000 times. A married couple sets up two awkward people and they start to fall in love while the original couple is splitting up. I know we've all seen that over and over, but the acting in this one makes it seem fresh and new. The story itself is very slow moving and basic, but the acting of all 4 main actors are what keeps you watching the movie. This is the definition of a character driven movie, the acting in the scene where Jack burns dinner is worth watching the movie for by itself. The movie is probably a C- but when the acting is taken into account it raises the level of the film. I say B-.