The Wackness

There's a crazy moment in The Wackness where protagonist Luke Shapiro (played by Josh Peck) gets a re-up from Jamaican weed supplier Percy (Method Man). Before the exchange, both characters discuss "the new shit" on the radio: Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die. In itself, the moment is just one more pop culture reference in a movie that's pornographic with them. But before the scene ends, Method Man's voice can be heard taking over the verse and, for an instant, Method is listening to himself on the radio. It's a moment Chuck Klosterman will likely put in an updated edition of Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, a sort-of reverse anachronism that begs for a literary label.

Aside from that OMG moment, The Wackness does little to deviate from the hip coming-of-age film dynamic. Post graduation, Luke just needs to deal. His parents' marriage is falling apart, his college plans are "safety-school", and his pot-head therapist Jeffrey Squires (the show-stealing Ben Kingsley) can only prescribe sex and heartbreak for it all. Then Luke meets Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby), who is also Squires' stepdaughter and you probably already know the rest. Talk about tired.

Thankfully, The Wackness separates itself from other stories about unhappy boys and heartless girls through Writer/Director Jonathan Levine's vision. He piles the nostalgia on thick, both for the Summer of 1994 and the passionate pursuit of ass, and then takes the narrative beyond basic teenage heartbreak. Levine paints a fragile portrait of budding manhood, where emasculation is a rite-of-passage and some of life's problems require resignations over solutions. 

Excellent performances from Thirlby, Method, and Famke Janssen (as Squire's wife) are all turned in, but the magic is between Kingsley and Peck. Peck may overact a bit, but he's surreal as his slimmed-down, thuggish self. His game is elevated in the presence of Kingsley, who carries The Wackness into moments of tragic greatness. Perfect for hipsters and teenage boys of all ages. 

A nice distraction.

Richard Jenkins Nominated for Best Actor

The Oscar nominations have been released. I'm seldom pleased with who wins (the decisions are often political messages to the outside world), but I'm overjoyed Richard Jenkins is nominated for his lead in The Visitor.

The Visitor is the story of a unfulfilled, middle-aged professor who discovers his second apartment has been rented out to illegal immigrants. Rather than kick them out, he decides to get to know them and you can guess where things go from there. For being about illegal immigration in the post-Dubya world, the film is neither a Hallmark sob-fest nor an ideological gatling gun. Instead, it's a hushed, near-masterpiece of realism that strikes a careful balance of ethos, pathos and logos.

Likely, there were "better" films this year--either Sean Penn or Mickey Rourke will win, probably Penn--but I didn't enjoy any other film as much as The Visitor.