The film begins strangely to say the least, but don’t turn it off, give it 10 minutes and you’ll settle into the movie. Settled may not be the right word because you never know who is narrating the movie until way later. Some reviews say the narrator is annoying, but I liked it and it keeps you wondering “who is it?” I like movies with flashbacks and things out of sequence which is maybe why I also love anything with time travel in it.
The
cast is stocked with many experienced actors such as Isaac who does a masterful
job of playing a man haunted by the loss of his wife. My wife and I practically jumped out of our
chairs at one point while watching this film. Mandy Patinkin plays the soft-hearted role as Will’s
father. Characters come and go quickly startling the audience, but they are acted so well you feel all of it. Banderas’
character is somewhat of a mystery which I liked. Costa is easy to like and plays the
long-suffering woman caught between two men’s egos. There is a philosophical
message to the film and Olivia Wilde is interesting because what we learn about
her is mostly from the mental images and memory of her husband played by Isaac.
As in real life we don’t always remember things as they actually were.
The film reminded me of the TV series ‘This
is Us’ the way it jumps around making it hard to follow if you miss anything,
but I liked it. In the parade of
characters we begin to know and then they are gone. For me this actually helped
me relate to what the character must have felt.
Monner is introduced to many
American things not the least of which is the craziest and most intense April fool’s
joke I’ve ever seen. I won’t spoil that
for you. Some viewers will feel dazed,
but I got that ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ & ‘Up’ vibe that one life touches so
many others and its what we do with the cards we are dealt that defines us like
Cortez’s character eludes. To me this is
the moral of the story. She tells Monner
her son that life will bring you to your knees but that he must get back up
because love is just ahead if you keep going.
Get up and keep going. I love this
message and it’s true. I’m 61 as I write
this review and I realized later in life that if I hadn’t kept going in my
marriage and on the job etc. I would never have gotten to where I am now. Life is tough for everyone and one moment I
can feel like I want to die and the next day I’m loving life and I have to wonder
in those quiet moments of inner reflection “what happened to those bad feelings” “where did they go?”
I marvel at reviews that say this movie
is too unrealistic or extreme because dah that is the reason we go the
movies. If we wanted realistic and
normal we would stay home. I want
extremes and to feel something. I want
to see other points of view, and fantasy and epic stuff.
We first see Abby snuggling with Will
discussing a Bob Dylan album “Time Out of Mind”. For half my
readers I will define Red Herring; something, especially a clue, that is or is
intended to be misleading or distracting. A red herring is anything that
leads you away from the truth for instance when trying to solve a crime or mystery. The reason I mention that is because in the
beginning of this film Will is in turmoil & we cannot be certain what we
see is actually what happened (thus a red herring). It makes it difficult to know what really
happened until we have more evidence. Will
is mentally unstable which we all relate to at some point in our lives.
The movie is done in acts like a Broadway play. Abby’s college thesis is on the concept of
the unreliable narrator. She explains to Will that the ultimate unreliable
narrator is “life.” I agree. Most of life
is completely out of our control and the only thing we can do is make choices
moment by moment and hope they work out as they conflict with everyone else’s
choices around the world. Life is a kind
of game with rules and cultural norms done in real time with few second chances
and no do overs. Life is relentless and
exciting and horrifying all in one lifetime.
We cannot choose our parents or where we are born. We cannot be someone else only ourselves. We cannot
choose what century we are born. Cortez
had it right – life brings us all to our knees and we must choose whether or
not to get up and seek love. God said essentially
the same thing but from the Creator of the universe chair. He said I have set before you life and death;
choose life and that life is in my Son Jesus Christ alone. He said you will seek and me and find me when
you search for me with all your heart.
That doesn’t mean God is hiding from us as some suppose, but it means
you must be all-in. God takes second
fiddle to no one. He sent his Son to die
for us because we couldn’t do it on our own and the price for getting that
great salvation is all-in surrender by faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Life is uncertain as this film makes clear,
but it also makes clear we are to strive for love regardless of what cards we
are dealt. I like the film.
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