Beginners (2011)
by George Watches Things
***
Beginners is a movie about two men, father and son. Hal, played very well by Christopher Plummer, is a veteran in life and love who, despite just beginning his life as an out gay man, has it all figured out. His son is Oliver, somewhat of a mail-in performance from Ewan McGregor, and Oliver doesn’t know anything for sure. He too is a beginner, as he has no clue what he is doing.
The movie starts at one point in time, and two relationships are explored differently: the one between Oliver and Hal is told in reverse order, while the one between Oliver and his new girlfriend (Anna, who is played by Mélanie Laurent) is told going forward. It’s an interesting device.
I hate to use the B word on a film that wants to be so heavy, but Beginners is rather breezy. Sure, it’s charming enough, but it never got to me emotionally. I didn’t connect with the Oliver character at all. Some of the scenes between him and Anna are just plain boring. I didn’t care about Anna’s father. There’s no insight. I blame that not only on McGregor, but also on how the character was built. Hal takes risks, and I admire that. Oliver just sits in his house and stares at the walls.
I didn’t dislike Beginners, but I know it could have been better.
The wrong movie got made. Apparently, this actually happened to the director, Mike Mills, which explains why it’s told from Oliver’s point of view. But this film would have been so much better had the focus been on Hal. I know I enjoyed his scenes more than anything else in the film.
Notes:
- I was distracted by the line the movie ends on. It is almost the exact same quote that Rabbit Hole, one of my favorite 2010 films, ends on. I’m not sure what to say about it, other than “it’s a good line, and it applies to both films.” It caught me off-guard.
- There are so many quotable, funny lines. Any favorites?
- Wasn’t quite sure what to make of the dog, but I know I loved him.
- Did I miss something? Why did she move out of his house?
- All of the lovers in the film have accents.
- You’ve gotta love that deadpan comedy.
- Beginners is available now on Amazon Instant and iTunes.
- If you see and enjoy Beginners, I suggest checking out Rabbit Hole and Certified Copy.
- As of November 5, Beginners is the 12th best film of 2011, in my opinion.
- Coming soon: you decide the best picture of the 1970s. Stay tuned!
I liked it but I definitely see what you say about it being better.
Thanks for commenting!
I think that it really did work being told from McGregor’s characters perspective, as part of the tension in the movie is to do with how the son has become a facsimile of a father that he no longer recognises. For me this is the crux of the movie and what leaves McGregor seeming befuddled, bewildered and at times utterly incapable of connecting with his emotional range. It’s really about a young man ‘beginning’ to mistrust what he’d thought he knew, and maybe, just maybe, ‘beginning’ to divine his own way in the world, liberated from the essence of a stoical, sullen, emotionally jaundiced family man. There is actually something weirdly hopeful in the closing phase of the film and I love the end line also. Haven’t seen Rabbit Hole yet, but I will have to check it out. Excellent wee review.
I didn’t really like it, it was cool and stylish at some points, but relatively boring at others. It became a chore to finish it.
McGregor and Plummer are two of my faves….I’m gonna have to dive into this.
I have yet to see it, but it sure looks brilliant to me!
Nice review…I really liked the film. I was surprised by how original it was. It was nice to see a film take romance seriously and in an interesting way. I was totally won over by Melanie Laurent’s character – I liked the worldly mystery about her, and the way she viewed life.
[...] Beginners (2011) [...]
Great review! I don’t necessarily agree, I thought Beginners was very touching and captivating, and I would definitely rank it in the top 5 movies I have seen from 2011 (which admittedly are mostly bummers, no Best Picture locks yet). And I adored the dog!
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[...] The narration at the beginning of Another Earth reminded me of Beginners. [...]