BEFORE: I know this seems like a film that belongs in February, and maybe it does, but I need it to link to my July 4 film, which is coming up this weekend, assuming my job at the movie theater doesn't start making me late. I've been getting sneaky and watching films in the mornings and afternoons on my days off, but I think a better plan will be to slow things down a bit after July 4, maybe cut back to 4 or 5 films a week - I should be able to do that and still finish the year on time, heck, I'm almost at my 200th film for the year, and 2021 is only half over, as of today. I'll print the format stats for June tomorrow, again I'm in a bit of a rush today.
But I watched about half of this film, one late night a few months ago - it was on in the background while I scanned through the listings looking for new movies on cable, and it caught my attention. But then I figured I should probably STOP watching it if I wanted to count it later on, and sure enough, it became important to making my connections now.
Hayes MacArthur carries over from "The Way Back" - according to the IMDB, anyway, I didn't see him yesterday, so I'm trusting he was there somewhere...
THE PLOT: Charlie has a neurological disorder where strong emotions, especially joy, make him faint. Working as a librarian gives him a quiet environment but then Francesca enters the library and his life.
AFTER: Cataplexy is a real condition, and it's possibly tied to narcolepsy - it's got something to do with a neuropeptide that stabilizes the transition between the waking and sleeping states. And if the neurons in the hypothalamus that produce this neuropeptide (hypocretin) get damaged by the autoimmune system, this results in a condition where any strong emotion - crying, laughing, terror - can trigger a fainting spell, which technically is the unexpected transition to the sleeping state. The brain is essentially tricked into thinking it's asleep. This film comes into my life just as I'm undergoing strange effects, too - namely that I'm getting exercise, which is unusual for me, and I've noticed it's harder for me to stay asleep for long periods of time, I'm waking up before the alarm, and I don't like that. I sort of have the opposite problem right now from the main character here, he feels joy and falls asleep, while I'm feeling depressed and can't stay asleep.
But I'm also asking the universe for guidance through movies this week, and essentially this film is about learning how to be happy, despite the risks involved. Sure, it's easy to just get yourself to a comfortable place in life, where everything is the way you want it, you never put yourself out there career-wise or romantically, and then you just sort of put your head down and get through your life to the end, with nothing ever really changing, and you die alone. Sure, it's a way to go, but then, are you really living? Life is change, as much as I hate to face that myself, and then when you look back on the last couple of decades and realize how much has changed over the years, then changed again and changed again, it may be hard to re-connect with that person you were 20 or 30 years ago. But that all happened, that was you then, and this is you now, even if you've forgotten all the steps in-between.
Charlie here feels an instant attraction to Francesca, who breaks up with her boyfriend very publicly and very loudly in the Brooklyn Library where he works. After one date, and one very forward invitation to get physical with her, Charlie faints on her doorstep and hits his head on the sidewalk. After that, he nixes any possible relationship with her, and sets her up with his brother, Cooper. Charlie then goes on to date Bethany, a quiet girl who knits and studies ancient grains, and Bethany is definitely more his speed - she's pleasant, sure, but she's nothing to get excited over, and he believes that's just what he needs. But he's essentially kept Francesca at arm's length, he still enjoys her company, but watching her date his brother makes him miserable enough to compensate, and thus keep from fainting every five minutes.
I can't help but wonder if this is really a metaphor for something - like we all want to be happy, but perhaps some combination of self-sabotage, watching the news of the day and constant concern and angst over what COULD go wrong in life keeps us from being TOO happy. Or is that just me? I'm not sure any more. Collectively we've all gone through a bunch of stuff over the last year and a half, and perhaps watching 500,000 people die in the U.S. alone just from a virus is enough misery for a while, and maybe we're all due for a little happiness this year. But some people spent more time at home, reconnected with their immediate family, learned new ways of doing their job from home, and thus some small measure of balance was achieved? I don't know, who can say. I was dining out on Sunday on break and I was surrounded by people celebrating after the Pride parade, and it sure seemed like people are ready to go out and party right now, it's going to be a hot summer for sure, but that's not going to stop people who have been cooped up indoors for a long time. People are ready to travel and ready to get their groove back.
But, ARE they, though? Isn't there still some trepidation involved, like people aren't ready to be joyous just yet? Who can celebrate when so many people have recently died, and are still dying in parts of the world? Joy still has to be tempered with somberness, and that's really what this film is about. Can anybody truly BE happy, and take pleasure in that, in and of itself? Or is life just a constant struggle to find that balance between doing the things that make you happy, and doing the things you have to do so that you have the time to do the things that make you happy? It's another topic for debate.
All that really matters here is that Charlie's plan to keep Francesca close to him by watching him date his brother looked really good on paper, but it's just not practical in the long run. And it's certainly not fair to Bethany, not at all - so eventually he's going to have to take that leap, and that means returning to frequently passing out. Oh, well, there's no way to do it but to go through it, I guess - every relationship is going to have its positives and negatives. But that right there makes this an unconventional romance movie, and maybe that's part of why it ended up outside of the usual February romance chain? Just a thought.
Also starring Martin Freeman (last seen in "What's Your Number?"), Morena Baccarin (last seen in "Deadpool 2"), Jake Lacy (last seen in "Otherhood"), Jane Curtin (last seen in "The Spy Who Dumped Me"), Melissa Rauch (last seen in "The Laundromat"), Shannon Woodward (last seen in "The Comebacks"), Adam Shapiro (last seen in "My Dinner with Hervé"), Jackie Seiden (last seen in "Jersey Boys"), Adam LeFevre (last seen in "Fool's Gold"), Sabrina Sloan, Sharon Gee (last seen in "Bill & Ted Face the Music"), Ellis Rubin (last seen in "The Greatest Showman"), Willie C. Carpenter, Mike Britt, Ed Herbstman (last seen in "Hustlers"), Neal Lerner, Tyler Bourke, Chris DiStefano.
RATING: 6 out of 10 blatant pans of the Manhattan skyline from the Brooklyn waterfront
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