Dir. Jim Jarmusch, US 2005, 105 mins
Cast: Bill Murray, Sharon Stone, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, Tilda Swinton, Julie Delpy
A very enjoyable tale of middle-aged angst and inertia. Bill Murray plays Don Johnston, a confirmed bachelor with what emerges as a colourful past, sinking into lethargy in his middle years. At the beginning of the film, his latest lover, Sherry (Delpy), has had enough and is walking out. His reaction appears to be one of sublime indifference, as he stares at the TV from the big sofa in his living room to which he appears to be almost glued, and then keels over into slumber. He is woken from his torpor by the delivery of a letter typed in red ink on pink paper which appears to be from a former girlfriend, telling him that he is the father of a 19-year-old son, who may be looking for him. The letter is unsigned. Don shows it to his next door neighbour and only apparent friend Winston (Jeffrey Wright, unrecognisable as the beautiful young man who played the title role of Basquiat nearly ten years ago). Winston, a bit of a romantic, who fancies himself as an amateur detective, tracks down the addresses of all of Don's girlfriends from twenty years ago, draws up an itinerary and persuades Don to go off on a journey retracing four of his past loves to find the mother of his son.
Murray is magnificent and very funny as Don. Lugubrious and minimally responsive to others, he appears to be a man for whom life is a burden, a bad joke being played on him personally, something to be avoided wherever possible, otherwise to be endured stoically. The contrast between him and Winston, a family man, with a wife, five children, several jobs and an enormous enthusiasm for life, is an enjoyable illustration of the attraction of opposites. The journey itself is effectively four vivid mini comic dramas, each with a different leading lady. Sharon Stone is particularly strong as the single mother of a precocious teenage girl, who welcomes Don temporarily back into her bed. I wanted to know her better. Frances Conroy ("Six Feet Under") is a married estate agent with an adoring husband and a picture perfect home, who appears ridden with hidden tensions. Jessica Lange is a bit of a New Age kook, running a thriving business as a pet therapist - she claims to be able to hear what animals are saying, and Tilda Swinton is heavily disguised in a too brief appearance as a biker's moll.
Does Don find what he is looking for? For that you need to see the film. What is interesting is how the journey changes Don. With his almost unmoving, deadpan face it should be difficult to see any change in the man. But change there is in Murray's subtly developed performance. The real point of the journey for him is the journey itself. Directed by Jarmusch with a subtle sense of comedy and an appealing wistfulness, this is a film for those who appreciate something quirky and unusual.
Carol Allen
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