Humility and pretension

Every so often we see a film that just clicks with us. We may not know why, but it may be worth exploring. Let me explore.
Last week I saw Ruby Sparks, which is a good (not great) film and has received good reviews. But I came away thinking, I loved that film. Why?

First, let me tell you a bit about it. The story is about a young writer, Calvin Weir-Fields (Paul Dano), an introvert whose first novel was a huge success but who now, 10 years later, suffers writer's block. He lives alone with his dog and sees a therapist, Dr. Rosenthal (Elliot Gould). Meanwhile, his brother Harry (Chris Messina) tells him he just needs to get laid. Calvin dreams about a girl. When he tells Dr. Rosenthal about it, he tells Calvin to write about that. "Write something bad," he says, addressing Calvin's perfectionism.
Calvin begins writing on his manual typewriter, which sits next to his iPod (go figure). He names the woman from his dreams Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan), and the words come with a new freedom. A day later, a young woman shows up in his apartment who fits his description of Ruby. It takes him some time to realize that she is real. He tells his brother but makes him swear to secrecy.
A succession of events follow, including a visit with Calvin's whacky mother (Annette Bening) and whackier stepfather (Antonio Banderas). The young couple experience differences, which Harry had warned Calvin about. Calvin can change Ruby by simply writing something about her on his typewriter, but unforeseen consequences follow.
The tone of this postmodern fable is funny but touching. It's directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, who directed Little Miss Sunshine, and written by Kazan.
As in Little Miss Sunshine, the characters here are often over the top, which adds to the humor but strains the credulity. But by the end, as in the earlier film, I was won over. I predicted the ending, but I didn't care. I wanted it. And besides, it provided a good lesson that I enjoyed learning along the way. 
What's the lesson? In a nutshell, that love cannot be controlled but must be given and received freely. That may seem obvious or trite, but it's still a good lesson, and Ruby Sparks provides a fun way to have it presented.
Why did it connect with me? I tend to like movies that explore the inner lives of writers and other artists (I loved Capote), and this one captures the mixture of humility and pretension that infects many writers. Writing is a vulnerable, humbling activity that's usually marked much more by failure than success. But it can also be pretentious. For example, who am I to think other people might be interested in the thoughts I'm writing here. I could identify with that mixture of humility and pretension, and perhaps it has a broader relevance. Maybe those two adjectives describe much of human activity.
Another reason I liked the movie is that it's shamelessly romantic, and I have a strong romantic side. And Dano and Kazan (who are a couple in real life) are a charming duo who show us that life is messier than we'd like it to be. But out of that messiness, a beautiful connection can come.
 

Complex humanity

Yesterday I went to see Bernie, the new film by Richard Linklater, who is one of my favorite directors. It's a different kind of film, hard to describe.

It's based on a true story set in the small, east Texas town of Carthage, where Bernie Tiede (Jack Black), a mortician who is gay, sings in the local Methodist church and gives caring attention to older widows, befriends Marjorie Nugent (Shirley McClaine), an 81-year-old widow who is also a millionaire. After several years of accompanying her on various trips to far-flung places and serving her every whim, he snaps after too much nagging and put-downs and shoots her. Being a dedicated mortician, he stores her body in a freezer in her garage rather than disposing of it. He then carries on with his life, donating much of the money he gets from her account and making excuses for her absence.
Eventually the local district attorney (Matthew McConaughey) investigates and finds the body. Bernie confesses his crime, saying it was like someone else doing it. Clearly, in the film's interpretation at least, it was not premeditated. Nevertheless, a jury from another town convicts him of first-degree murder, and he's sent to prison for life.
Black gives a good performance and shows off his singing ability. But what makes the film work and provides the laugh-out-loud humor are the interviews with townsfolk in Carthage who by turns adore and admire Bernie. They overlook his homosexuality, more impressed with how nice he was to everyone. The townspeople's heavy accents and colorful language, such as "that dog don't hunt" or "he only shot her with four bullets, not five," are funny but also endearing.
Although many may look down on these people, the film reveals a community that is quite complex, able to include a variety of people and absorb a variety of emotions. These people don't hold onto stereotypical prejudices. Many of them embrace a gay man who murdered an old woman and believe he should be exonerated.
Granted, much of the film feels over-the-top. It's that rare film that doesn't feel realistic but is actually based on facts. One more evidence that truth is often stranger than fiction.
I understand that some Carthage citizens, including the district attorney, and relatives of Ms. Nugent, disagree with the film's interpretation of events. It's not a documentary, more a mockumentary. But it's not quite that either. Is it a dark comedy? Yes and no.
It's one more fine film by Linklater, who has also made Dazed and Confused, Waking Life and the outstanding Before Sunrise and Before Sunset.
If you happen to go, be sure to stay through the credits. You get to see the real Bernie, conversing from prison with Jack Black.