Storytelling

Storytelling
by Todd Solondz

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DVD Reviews of Storytelling

DVD Review: uneven but often powerful film
Summary: 3 Stars

The second story, which is almost twice as long as the first, creates much more of an impact, due largely to the fact that it gives itself more time for the development of character, milieu and theme. In this tale, entitled, not surprisingly, "Nonfiction," Solondz presents us with a view of an upper middle class suburban family caught in major crisis. The story focuses on young Scooby Livingston, a high school senior so devoid of ambition, drive and motivation, that he is literally drifting through life, indifferent to family, school, peers, anything but his pie-in-the-sky dream of becoming a talk show host like Conan O'Brien (who makes a fun cameo appearance in the film). Scooby's family resides in one of those perfectly manicured suburban residences replete with a maid from Central America whom the family members either ignore or treat with hurtful disdain (the mean-spirited action of the youngest son in this regard provides one of the truly disturbing, haunting moments of the film). Solondz does a beautiful job conveying the quiet desperation that defines so many lives lived behind such suburban facades. Scooby's parents are at a loss to understand why their sterile home environment fails to elicit the responses they think it should from their oldest son. Paul Giamatti plays Toby Oxman, a wannabe documentary filmmaker who decides to make a movie about Scooby's attempts to get into college. Toby is a man whose life has not turned out the way he had imagined it would. Unmarried, living with a roommate, and working as a clerk at a local shoe store, Toby latches onto the Livingston family as his ticket to fame and fortune. By the end of the film, Toby has gotten more than he bargained for as the family weathers some amazing crises and even provides him with the perfect "finale" for his nearly completed work.

"Nonfiction" takes a number of surprising turns, not all of which are entirely convincing or credible, but the film is more interesting for its characterizations and milieu than for its plotting. Scooby is representative of many of today's apathetic young people, cut off from both his own emotions and the emotions of those around him. Young Mark Webber captures Scooby's passive, glassy-eyed exterior perfectly. Equally impressive are John Goodman and Julie Haggerty as Scooby's well-meaning but hopelessly ineffective parents, who simply can't understand why their son fails to share any of their basic values. Jonathan Osser, as Scooby's youngest brother, Mikey, is a revelation, a smart kid who seems, on the surface, to be warm and caring, but who can, with cold calculation, destroy another human being without a moment's regret or hesitation.

As a director, Solondz creates an atmosphere and a world that is raw, stark and sterile, utterly drained of happiness and joy. In fact, I don't think a single character ever smiles in the course of either of the two stories (with the exception of Scooby and, of course, Conan, in the former's fantasy sequences). These are people sealed off from the possibility of happiness, who are just going through the motions because the only other alternative is death. As such, the film is, in many ways, a disturbing and depressing experience, but one that offers some valuable insights into human nature. You may not want to live in the world Solondz is showing us, but you may want to visit it for a short time to perhaps see how much better your own life is.

Description of Storytelling