07-03-27 Reign Over Me (2007)

Seen: March 24th, 2007
Format: Theater
Rating: 8

The buzz around this film seems to be focused on whether or not Adam Sandler can do justice to a dramatic role and potentially follow in the footsteps of the likes of Robin Williams and Jim Carey. For those with short attention spans, the answer is "yes".

For those of you still with me, Adam Sandler's performance is only a small piece of this excellent pastiche.

Credit goes first to Mike Binder, not for his small performance, but for the excellence of his script and his execution of it. The subject matter dealt with here is sensitive. It would be easy to stray into territories both maudlin and cliche. It would be simple to make Charlie an everyman, a metaphor for every person affected by the tragedies of 9/11. Doing so would make him resonate with everyone. It would allow us to have him stand for us all. It would be a cop out.

Instead, Binder makes Charlie very specific. He give his a specific job, a specific family life, and specific idiosyncrasies. He gives him defects of character. In short, Binder makes Charlie real, and in doing so allows us to identify with him as an entity, instead of as a metaphor. This is ultimately much more compelling.

The real metaphor in the film is Alan. He is all the things that Charlie is not, but suffers from the same problems. Since he has no excuse, no outward signs of the smaller traumas that plague him, he is not immediately perceived as defective. The journey he takes toward his own healing parallels Charlie's almost exactly. In the end, this makes for a much stronger statement.

Great performances abound here. I absolutely love Don Cheadle's work. The fact that he's not won an Oscar is proof of the shallow and political nature of the Academy. He should have his own category by now. His Alan is brilliant, subtle and compelling. Liv Tyler is cast against type and makes makes another brilliant and subtle turn. You may not be familiar with Saffron Burrows, one of Mike Figgis's frequent castings. She plays, let's say, "damaged" characters like no one I've ever seen. Donna is a complex character and one hard to make sympathetic. Burrows manages to make her sincere and real. Jada Pinkett-Smith is understated and effective.

The film is well shot. The locations and sets are carefully chosen and artfully reflect their characters. There is a general warmth to the look of the film which is comforting and embracing. There are some very cold locations, and these stand out in their intentional starkness.

I like this film very much. There is power here. There is compassion. There is a hard look at ourselves and how we deal with our individual traumas and how we assign responsibility for them.

The Good: Sensitive without being maudlin

The Bad: Communication difficulties abound

The Ugly: The hypocrisy of "helping" someone else to salve your own wounds