Hollywood has produced many films that test the audience's ability to accept the obscure, the odd and quirky. With all the commercial formulaic films that are made, a certain percentage, albeit small, films are produced which push the envelope of obscurity and bizarre. So, we are offered "Life Itself" which, although has its 'normality', certainly has its obscure parts which the audience won't see coming.
As a young couple, Will (David Isaac) and Abby (Olivia Wilde), goes from college romance to marriage and the birth of their first child, the unexpected twists of their journey create reverberations that echo over continents and through lifetimes in this story. This examines the perils and rewards of everyday life in a multigenerational saga. Lives connect in the oddest of ways from these two continents: in Spain--Mr. Saccione (Antonio Banderas), Javier (Sergio Peris-Mencheta) and Rodrigo (Alex Monner) to New York--Will, Abby and Irwin (Mandy Patinkin). Set in New York City and Carmona, Spain, this celebrates the human condition replete with all the complexities and surprises with several people, where ultimately lives become intertwined.
Others to round out the cast are Annette Bening as Dr. Cait Morris, Jean Smart as Linda, Laia Costa as Isabel, Isabel Durant as Shari Dickstein, Lorenza Izzo as Elena, Adrian Marrero as Rodrigo (7-10 years old), Jake Robinson as Henry/Hero and Samuel L. Jackson as Samuel L. Jackson.
Considering this seasoned writer has limited experience in the director's chair, Dan Fogelman ("Danny Collins" '15) plus a short, was really able to pull off the ability to convince his actors to extract the many emotions it took to make these characters as odd, obscure, and different as they were. Possibly, being the consummate writer helps with his directorial abilities. I'm sure he'll direct more, especially since this was brilliantly and deftly handled. It was also written by Fogelman ("Cars" '06, "The 12th Man" (TV movie) '06, "Fred Claus" '07, "Lipshitz Saves the World" (TV movie) '07, "Bolt" '08, "Tangled" '10, "Crazy Stupid Love" '11, "The Guilt Trip" '12, "Las Vegas" '13, "Danny Collins" '15, The King of 7B" (TV movie) '15) plus shorts. .As well directed as this film was, the writing was as quirky and eclectic. Other than seeing David Isaac's talented acting, the one reason I went to see this was for Fogelman's dark writing. Was this writing flawless? No, not at all. The writing is something that acquires a particular taste for and because of its slow build up, one must be patient with this. I was squirming at first, then, all of a sudden, the plot to this film really picked up and it became the film I was truly expecting. The acting, specifically by Isaac and Olivia Wilde showed its own eclectic energy as their characters unfolded before your very eyes.
This, as with most of Fogelman's films, is not for the large mass appeal. Because of its obscurity and quirkiness, this is definitely for a select audience. This is not a bad thing as much as these qualities make this a fresh and original screenplay which in this day and age of banality, it is a breath of fresh air.
Out of 4 Stars: 3 Rated: R 117mins.
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