Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Cold Welcome

Author(s): Al
Location: New York

“Cold Welcome"

Directed by David Fincher
Written by Daniel Futterman

Principal Cast:

Sam Aronson: Jake Gyllenhaal
Anne Aronson: Faye Dunaway
Lisa Mendel: Zooey Deschanel
Benny: John C. Reilly
Walter Finch: Chris Cooper
Allan Holt: Stanley Tucci
Michael Woodworth: Kurt Russell
Nora Mendel: Sally Field
Cara Feldman: Rashida Jones
and
Frank Aronson: Gene Hackman

Tagline: "What happens when you're forced to return to a life you thought you'd left behind?"

Synopsis: Sam Aronson is finally happy with his life. He's got a successful career as a P.I. in New York City, a funny and cute girlfriend Cara, and a good apartment. But one day he gets a fateful call; his mother, telling him that his father Frank, who he had always been on bad terms with, has been murdered. Sam will now have to return to the life he wanted so desperately to leave behind: the sleepy small town in Michigan were he grew up-and always wanted to escape from.

The inept police, headed up by Walter Finch, determines that Frank's probable murderer was Benny, one of Frank's mentally unstable underlings at the store he owned. But Sam suspects otherwise. He decides to return home to try and solve his father's murder. When he returns, he finds his usually calm and understanding mother in a state of dementia and denial. He also comes across his high school sweetheart, Lisa, who stayed in Michigan to care for her sick mother, but occasionally longs for something more. She reluctantly agrees to help him with the case.

While researching his death, Sam finds out more about his father than he ever knew. An obnoxious representative for a big-box store, Allan Holt, had been fighting with Frank for years over trying to buy his land. He also comes across an old college friend of Frank's, Michael Woodworth, who had been financially supporting the family for years but had become irate and constantly threatening Frank to repay him. Sam has suspicions about these two men, and decides to investigate them further. Meanwhile, Sam is reconnecting with his mother and helping her out of her depression.

As he spends more and more time in his sleepy hometown, he discovers things about his family that he never knew, and rekindles his relationship with Lisa. But when he is anonymously threatened over the phone, he wonders if he should stay on the case and avenge the father he barely knew… or return to New York and spend the rest of his live thinking of what could have been.

What the press would say:

At first glance, "Cold Welcome" seems like just another small-town/murder film. It seems formulaic, maybe downright boring. But look beyond its surface and the film isn't about a murder being solved: it's about rediscovering youth, facing a troubled past, and relationships both familial and adversarial. Masterfully directed by David Fincher, who made "Zodiac" dark and interesting, "Cold Welcome" tells the story of a yuppie who returns to his small hometown to solve his father's murder. While the movie does have dark overtones and a melancholy premise, it's really a character drama-about the conflicted Sam and the people who surround him. Fincher directs the film with an almost sepia-tinged feel, weaving an intimate setting around his characters. We never learn anything before Sam does-it's almost as if the film is all through his eyes. As Sam pieces together Frank's murder, we do too. Dan Futterman's script is witty and clever, but the real high point of the film is the acting. Jake Gyllenhaal, the lead, shows depth and range as Sam, a brooding yuppie who does not want to return to the life he left behind. He's showing real capacity here. Faye Dunaway, in a remarkable comeback, works wonders as Sam's earnest mother, shaken by her husband's death. Her eyes convey so many emotions at once, it's almost hard to keep up. Zooey Deschanel, a good actress who doesn't get many good roles, shines as Sam's counterpart. She is visibly hurt by his abandonment and is almost depressing, but she shows glimpses of light beneath her tough exterior that show us Lisa's true colors. Gene Hackman, seen only through flashbacks, does a lot with a limited role. Admittedly, as Sam's dead father, he IS the heart and soul of the movie. Stanley Tucci, Kurt Russell, and Chris Cooper also give great performances in villainous, yet somehow sympathetic roles. John C. Reilly, as the mentally unstable prime suspect, is amazing. He exhibits method acting at its best: completely inhabiting the character and laying himself bare for the camera, Reilly makes every word powerful, every syllable quake, every face filled with meaning. Playing the mentally disabled is hard, but he pulls it off brilliantly.

"Cold Welcome" won't change your life. And it's not the greatest anything. But it's an inherently human, well made picture. And that's all it has to be. Well written and directed, I would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of conscious thought in their moviegoing experience.

Best Picture-AMPAS
Best Picture (Drama)-HFPA
Best Ensemble-SAG
Best Director-David Fincher
Best Original Screenplay-Dan Futterman
Best Actor-Jake Gyllenhaal
Best Supporting Actor-Gene Hackman
Best Supporting Actor-John C. Reilly
Best Supporting Actor-Stanley Tucci
Best Supporting Actress-Faye Dunaway
Best Supporting Actress-Zooey Deschanel

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