Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York, from 2008, struck me as an ambitious failure. It is well enacted by a stellar cast, but its direction fails to enliven its jumbled and drug addled narrative. Kaufman tells us all the answers to the riddle of Philip Seymour Hoffman's theater director whose psyche becomes grist for his work, but does not convey themes and feelings through cinematic means. The message is hammered home by conceits, not filmic technique. For example, the insertion of Hoffman in the TV cartoons and commercials that he views. The idea is to convey the onslaught of the media upon fragile psyches, but the technique is so ham-fisted that it distances us from the protagonist. Darren Aronofsky's direction of a similar gambit in Requiem for a Dream is more compelling. The repetitive compulsion of the protagonist's relationships is an interesting theme to explore, but Kaufman's direction muddles the already murky conceits.
Mr. Hoffman's performance is impeccable, but lacks an element of surprise or spontaneity. This is largely due to his character being trapped in an overdetermined plot. The supporting cast fares better because they pop in and out of the murk. The standouts are Tom Noonan and Samantha Morton. Noonan displays an uncanny skill at dialogue that his horror freaks do not let him display. Ms. Morton handles the Joan Blondell role with aplomb. Her dialect as a Long Island chippie is spot on. No other film has brought out her sensuality and strength as well. Despite my caveats, I would not dissuade anyone from seeing Synecdoche, New York. It is overlong and overly ambitious, but it has its moments.
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