The Man Who Wasn't There (R)

Some movies land so quietly it is as if they don't want to be noticed (The Movie That Wasn't There comes to mind.) Many of these films arrive without hype and hoopla simply because they are no good or, if they are good, because no person of note participated in their making. To say the least, individuals of note and merit collaborated in the making of this extraordinary film. Despite the awkward title (though O Brother Where Art Thou beats it in viewer unfriendliness), the velvety black and white film stock, the near two-hour running time, and the nonexistent publicity campaign - this is the new Coen Brothers movie!

Yes, The Coen Brothers of Fargo fame. The Coen Brothers -
Joel directs while he and brother Ethan share writing credit - who have time and time again (yes, I'll even count The Hudsucker Proxy) managed to mesmerize audiences with their exclusive brand of highbrow, frenetically quirky fantasies of American subcultures (usually of the 40's and 50's) with a conscientious and respectful nod to the dark side thereof. If you have no idea about who or what I am talking about then you are in for a wicked treat.

Your homework (here is where I pretend I have readers - Hi Bones) is to rent Fargo (1996) or The Big Lebowski (1998) (their most "mainstream" work) and decide if these guys are for you - I'll admit they're not for everybody, especially some of their more bizarre stuff. If you like, check out Blood Simple (their first - 1984) as your follow up and feel your way from there. Not to influence unfairly, but Millers Crossing (1990) will easily make my Top Ten. These are the guys that make people like me and you want to be filmmakers (Sorry Michael Bay).

As you can imagine, I had some expectations when I sat down comfortably at the Midway Theatre in Forest Hills (the only theatre in The Borough of Queens showing this movie!) And like a Blue Gelati Marino's Ices after a camp Shabbos lunch, The Coen Brothers do not disappoint.

At first the monotonous voice-over of barber Ed Crane (Billy Bob Thornton, right on - this guy is good, better than I thought) sounds like a case of uncharismatic acting. Soon enough you'll make the connection between the voice - a gravelly cool example of apparent indifference, the man, and the title of the movie. But wait - This isn't the story of someone who sits back hopelessly and watches life pass by or the story of a man looking for some attention in a world where he is a ghost. Make no mistake, this is not about George McFly.

This is the story of the barber. The man who you go to before some of the most important days of your life. The man who hears things, is told personal things (secrets) perhaps because of his passive and harmless façade - maybe because he isn't really there. But our barber, Ed (the names screams nonentity), turns out to be there and because he is deceptively impassive, harm is caused, grievous harms; but, they are not entirely his fault.

In a very Coenesque setup (The Brothers are clearly intrigued by infidelity and its affects) Ed tries to blackmail his wife's boss (James Gandolfini, mixing his brutal stuff with his non brutal stuff) who is messing around with the wife (Frances McDormand digging deep like her usual magnificent self) so that Ed can partner up with a low-life customer who is looking to open a dry cleaning business. Sounds regular enough, but the beauty of a Coen Brothers movie is not where you're going, but how you get there. The art is in the details and nuances. More nuanced pictures like this will be difficult to find without crossing an ocean. You will also get to meet the cast of familiar Coen Brothers faces who show up here and there throughout their sagas (Joe Polito and Michael Badalucco are the standouts here.) One new memorable addition to this peculiar universe is a hotshot, cerebral lawyer played by Tony Shaloub (SpyKids). A lawyer who while defending a client facing the chair says things like, " Don't look at the facts - look at the meaning of the facts and once you look, you have changed the facts and in reality there is no meaning". If I did not mention it earlier, The Brothers are also masters of the dry and graveyard humor as well as accomplished framers of wacked out visuals.

This movie, wacky moments and all, is more deeply themed in the shadows than the light. While it may steal a smile or two, this is certainly not a comedy. We have come to watch the "everyman" - claiming to have no special talents and perhaps meaning it - trying to make something of himself or, if it is too late for him, for the life of another, a young piano player. (Portrayed calmly yet remarkably by Scarlett Johansson.) The real disturbing truth is that we have come to watch a perfectly fine, perfectly sane man give this push, this big try…all for naught, because while this man may be in fact there, he ends up disappearing before our eyes.