Movie Review Dreamin' Wild

Dreamin' Wild (2023) 

Directed by Bill Pohlad 

Written by Bill Pohlad 

Starring Casey Affleck, Zooey Deschanel, Walton Goggins, Beau Bridges 

Release Date August 4th, 2023 

Published August 1st, 2023

The story of Donnie Emerson is a remarkable one. In the 1970s, he and his brother, Joe, made a record. It got recorded and it was made available on vinyl and everything. It appeared that Donnie, if not Joe, had a bright future ahead of him as a singer songwriter. Circumstances conspired and Donnie never found stardom. Then, in 2008, a copy of Donnie and Joe's album was found by a man in Spokane, Washington. He made it his mission to get the record to as many people as possible. The efforts of this man, Jack Fleischer, brought the record to the attention of Light in the Attic records, an indie label that managed to track down Donnie and Joe. 

In an improbable twist of fate, Dreamin' Wild, their 1978 record, found a new life. Donnie began a second act as a respected and revered singer songwriter and now, writer-director Bill Pohlad has brought the amazing story of Donnie, Joe and their family to the big screen in Dreamin' Wild. It's an inherently cinematic underdog story but the typical elements aren't as interesting to Pohlad as the inner turmoil of Donnie Emerson, a man who was racked with guilt over the failure of his music career and struggled with intense mistrust, insecurity and fear over trying to once again live his dream. 

Casey Affleck stars in Dreamin' Wild as Donnie Emerson. A father of two, Donnie's recording studio is struggling to stay afloat. Donnie and his wife, Nancy (Zooey Deschanel) support their family and business by playing covers at weddings and other small venue events. Donnie is facing an uncertain future when this random phone call changes everything. Matt Sullivan (Chris Messina), a record company flack for Light in the Attic Records has moved mountains trying to find Donnie and his brother, Joe (Walton Goggins). 

Somewhere in Montana, someone found a copy of a record called Dreamin' Wild. The record was recorded by the Emerson Brothers in 1978 and it had been mostly a failure. It did lead to Donnie briefly getting a record deal and traveling to Los Angeles, but he soon ended up back home. That's a story that we will eventually uncover as Dreamin' Wilde lays out its story. For the moment, it's nothing but good news for Donnie's family, including his loving and supportive father, Don Sr. (Beau Bridges). The only one who seems reticent about this sudden new discovery is Donnie. 

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Documentary Review Hal

Hal (2018) 

Directed by Amy Scott

Written by Documentary

Starring Hal Ashby, Bud Cort, Beau Bridges, Louis Gossett Jr. 

Release Date September 7th

Published December 12th, 2018 

One thing that arrogant film critics like myself hate to do is admit our blind spots, those places in film where we are less than educated. One of my significant blind spots is the work of director Hal Ashby. It’s not that I am not aware of him or his reputation as a genius and I have even seen two of his films, Shampoo, which I greatly disliked, and Being There, which I adored. I’ve seen portions of his final movie, 8 Million Ways to Die but as the new documentary, Hal, indicates, I don’t have much need to return to that troubled project as any kind of indication of Hal Ashby’s talent. 

Hal tells the life story of Hal Ashby as he went to Hollywood in the mid-1960’s and began life as an iconoclast and stayed that way. Ashby came to prominence as an editor and found fame when he worked with his closest friend, Norman Jewison on the Oscar winning In the Heat of the Night. Ashby’s editing of that AFI Top 100 movie won an Oscar and from there Ashby and Jewison’s friendship blossomed into a partnership that finally allowed Ashby the chance to be a director. 

His first feature film was a daring note on racial attitudes of the 1960’s and the burgeoning 1970’s, called The Landlord. The film stars Beau Bridges and Louis Gossett Jr and it featured a story about race and politics that many other filmmakers would not have had the nerve and boldness to approach. As attested to by Jewison, who produced the film, and Beau Bridges and Louis Gossett Jr, who starred in The Landlord and are interviewed in Hal, the film was in line with the left wing politics of the time and yet had a freshness that came specifically from Hal Ashby. 

The documentary movies chronologically through Ashby’s career picking up next with his indelible cult film Harold & Maude, a film I have found to be a particular challenge to my sensibilities. I suppose that is the point of that movie, to challenge preconceived notions but I have thus far found myself unable to watch the movie which has the premise of a depressed young man, played by Bud Cort, who falls in love with an 80 year old woman played by Ruth Gordon. 

Everyone I know who has seen Harold & Maude and I can’t intellectualize my issue with the movie beyond the simplistic prejudice that I am sure the film confronts. I can tell you that from the documentary, the film appears to be as daring and fascinating as any of Ashby’s work I have seen. Sadly, Bud Cort is not interviewed for the documentary but footage of him speaking at an event in Ashby’s honor following his death in 1986 gives insight into the strange relationship between the two that helps to shape the unending uniqueness of Harold & Maude. 

The Last Detail is next and again, the film lacks the big interview with Jack Nicholson, though an interview he conducted at the time he was filming is featured. What Nicholson’s relationship was to Hal Ashby is not mentioned but he was known for being beloved by his actors for his loose, improv style that used scripts mainly as an outline and not the gospel for how a film was to be crafted. Ashby shot reams and reams of footage for his films and culled from there a take that suited his sensibilities which in many cases conflicted with the original intent of the writers. 

Ashby himself appears in the film via recordings he made in the midst of making his movies. Especially near the end of his career when wars with studio executives became a significant part of his life. Ashby was labeled as difficult and his copious use of marijuana was portrayed by Hollywood power players as an addiction that affected his filmmaking. I don’t buy that but we can never tell by Ashby’s 1980’s output which consists mostly of films he made and then were taken from him by studio executives. 

Hal is a fascinating and immersive documentary with a film historian's eye for detail. I loved the use of scenes from Ashby’s movies and scraps of interviews at the time the films were being made and I was particularly struck by the repeated use of an old school editing machine and a very old film camera as interstitial devices. These capture the time of Hal Ashby and recall his love of the editing room and the hours he would spend pulling together his vision from reams of film that he’s portrayed as knowing backwards and forwards. 

Hal was directed by Amy Scott who is in a strong position to make a movie about Hal Ashby. Scott also began her career as an editor and made her feature directing debut here. She also edited the documentary and it's a tremendous piece of work. Especially insightful are interviews with directors who were deeply influenced by Hal Ashby including Judd Apatow, David O. Russell and Alexander Payne whose works carry in them the kind of warmth and insight and oddity that Ashby was well known for. 

Movie Review The Descendants

The Descendants (2011) 

Directed by Alexander Payne 

Written by Alexander Payne 

Starring George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Judy Greer 

Release Date November 18th, 2011 

Published November 17th, 2011 

"The Descendants" is filled with glorious flaws. From the strangely clumsy exposition to the at times awkward voiceover narration to the occasionally intrusive score, the flaws are undeniable no matter how much you may like the movie. These and similar flaws are included in every film that writer-director Alexander Payne has made. Yet, we still consider him a genius as a filmmaker. Why? Because, every mistake, every imperfection of an Alexander Payne film is a reflection of the mistakes and imperfections of his oh so compelling characters.

George Clooney stars in "The Descendants" as Matt King. Matt's life is far from paradise; despite the fact that he owns a large stretch of what is undoubtedly considered paradise. Matt lives in Hawaii and while his opening narration is meant to convey the ugly side of Hawaii, what we will soon see, the stretch of land that Matt's family owns, is the side of the Big island that gives Hawaii it's reputation as paradise. Matt's personal life however, reflects the ugly side of things. Matt's wife is in a coma following a boating accident. This leaves Matt in charge of his youngest daughter, Scottie (Amara Miller) for the first time in years. It's not that Matt's a bad father he's just never been called upon to be a very good father.

Matt's oldest daughter, Alex (Shailene Woodley) is away at boarding school but with her mother's health failing Matt decides to bring her home; whether she wants to come home or not. Alex knows something that her father doesn't. It's the reason Alex has been acting out: Matt's wife was cheating on him. This revelation sets the story of "The Descendants" in motion as Matt and Alex form an unusual new bond over trying to find the man who his wife was sleeping with and considering leaving him for. The search leads to a trip to Matt's fabled track of land; which, in a strange twist has also drawn the attention of his wife's lover.

Running parallel to the cuckolding story is that of Matt and his family and Matt's decision about who to sell his family's land to or whether to sell it at all. The land issue gives "The Descendants" grounding in Hawaiian history that is surprisingly resonant and well founded. George Clooney's performance as Matt is phenomenal. While you will have to suspend belief that a woman would really leave Clooney for Matthew Lillard, Clooney sells the part with panache and a striking mix of drama and good humor. There is darkness to the humor of "The Descendants" that can be hard to take but Clooney is the best possible guide over the rough spots.

"The Descendants" is undoubtedly flawed but I've come to expect flaws from Alexander Payne. Alexander Payne's focus is on allowing his actors the space to create indelible characters that employ his words to the best comic or dramatic purpose. These characters, like Matt and Alex, are more often than not so wildly compelling that the flawed directions and moments of clumsiness fade away in their presence.

I was reminded often during "The Descendants" of Alexander Payne's "About Schmidt" starring Jack Nicholson. Like "The Descendants," "About Schmidt" employs an occasional voiceover that is at times a little too knowing and cute. The exposition of "About Schmidt" is heavy-handed in the same way it is in "The Descendants." And, as in "The Descendants," "About Schmidt" ends on an awkward yet peaceful beat. I love "About Schmidt." The flaws of that film are the flaws of the main character played by Jack Nicholson. Truly, "About Schmidt" would be less of a film without these flaws; without Alexander Payne's willingness to let his film be flawed in the same ways his characters are flawed.

The same can be said of "The Descendants" where the clumsy exposition reflects the clumsiness of Matt King as he approaches this strange and unfamiliar place in his life. George Clooney is brilliant at bringing Matt's problems to the surface with quiet dignity that gets punctured with strong comic effect. "The Descendants," warts and all, is a terrific film populated by compelling characters that carry the ability to make you laugh or cry. The imperfections are glaring but easy to forgive because these characters are so very compelling.