It’s not easy for a film to be charming, poignant and funny
all at once; but that’s exactly what this film is. It is the story of a man so
infuriated by the hand that life has dealt him that he can longer see beyond
his own anger at; well, everything.
On his way to the doctor’s office one day Henry Altman,
played by Robin Williams, has a minor car accident with a cab. This is
seemingly the last straw for him. His older son died 2 years ago, leaving him
and his wife, played by Melissa Leo, in a loveless marriage filled with blame
and dissatisfaction. And when he gets to the doctor’s office, where he will be
getting the results of a brain scan, things don’t get much better.
With her life spinning out of control, the doctor he sees is
forced to give the bad news of a fatal brain aneurysm to Mr. Altman. He
literally forces her to do it by screaming at her and taking out all of his
life’s inequities out on her. She cracks and tells him he has 90 minutes to
live. Infuriated he leaves the office in search of what he should be doing with
only 90 minutes left to live.
During the next 60 minutes or so of this movie he chases a
dram of piecing his family back together, wondering how it ever went so wrong.
Meantime, everyone is chasing him as he darts about Brooklyn looking for his
younger estranged son. Even the doctor; who may be in serious trouble for the
way she handled the encounter with Mr. Altman, is searching for him. She desperately
wants to get him to a hospital.
This movie is a pleasure to watch. It has 2 of my favorite actresses in it;
Mila Kunis, who bears watching as her talents grow from film to film; and
Melissa Leo, who I have been following since she did theater at Fell’s Point in
Baltimore before landing some of her early TV roles. In this film she takes on
a whole new persona as the beleaguered wife of a very angry and self-destructive
man. That she is able to blend the comedy with the tragedy of the role so well
speaks to her abilities as a true actress. Peter Dinklage, as his loving
younger brother, is remarkable; as he is in any film. It's also interesting to note that al the stars in this film first honed their craft working TV sitcoms.
As for Robin Williams; what can you say about a guy whose
lines in this film include, “”1951—2014; that’s what it will say on the headstone.
It’s not the numbers that count- it’s the dash in between.” I wonder what thoughts went through his mind;
easily as troubled as his character Mr. Altman’s. I know that I am glad he got
to make this film. To see him as a fully matured actor rather than an extension
of his stand-up routines, as in “Good Morning Vietnam”, is one of the best
tributes an actor could ever hope for.
Excellent direction and a lively story and screenplay make
this one hell of an enjoyable experience. And it all happens in Brooklyn; my
home town.
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