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Laurel Canyon | Year: 2002 Directed: - Lisa Cholodenko Actors/Actresses: - Frances McDormand - Christian Bale - Kate Beckinsale - Alessandro Nivola - Natascha McElhone - Frances Mcdormand a disappointing step down from "high art" Three years ago, in the movie, "Almost Famous," Frances McDormand played a wise but overprotective mom who, at her wits' end, bemoaned the fact that rock stars kidnapped her son. Now, in "Laurel Canyon," she turns the tables on that scenario, seizing the opportunity with great, obvious and sexy relish. McDormand plays Jane, a frisky, reckless, fortysomething music producer who strolls around her expansive Southern California spread in worn leather pants and an AC/DC T-shirt. She's a little like Sheryl Crow ... or at least what Sheryl Crow tries really, really hard to be. Jane, who starts her days with bong hits and Steely Dan, is having a fling with Ian (Alessandro Nivola), a singer 16 years her junior, and her lifestyle is hardly harshed at all when she's visited by her son Sam (Christian Bale) and his fiancee Alex (Kate Beckinsale). The couple is just out of medical school, wracked by premarital anxiety, and they are forced to move into Jane's rowdy house while Sam starts his residency and Alex writes her dissertation. Alex is studying "the reproductive behavior of the fruit fly," while uptight Sam seems overtly depressed by the fact that his mom is cool enough to have framed photographs of herself with David Bowie and Iggy Pop. Couldn't such serious, studious kids find a calmer place to stay than in what appears to be a successful sub-franchise of the Hotel California? Probably. But then there wouldn't be a movie. As time passes and the lazy afternoons and pool-lit evenings add up, tension grows between Sam and Jane. Sam starts to become attracted to a co-worker (Natascha McElhone). And Alex gravitates into Jane's world and starts to become attracted to, well, a couple of different people. And then things get really complicated. Unfortunately, things also slow down to a bit of a crawl. "Laurel Canyon" was written and directed by Lisa Cholodenko, whose previous movie was "High Art," a film which was also about a sultry, enigmatic artist surrounded by chaos and lots of chill-time. It, too, was slow-paced and atmospheric. But it also had several really strong performances pushing the movie along, and "Laurel Canyon" only has two - McDormand and Nivola, who are both excellent but must support a somewhat sluggish, underwritten movie by themselves. They almost pull it off. Christian Bale, usually a highlight in a movie, gets bogged down playing the moody, resentful son. It's hard to sympathize with a character who, when torn between Kate Beckinsale and Natascha McElhone (the definition of a win-win decision), can't get out of the dumps long enough to at least crack a smile. He has to be the drag, the person who dislikes the most magnetic, charming element of the film. So the deck is kinda stacked against him. Which makes me think: Maybe "Laurel Canyon" should've been the movie in which rock stars kidnap Frances McDormand's son. If Stillwater, the band from "Almost Famous," had somehow dragged grouchy Sam off on their tour bus before he moved back in with his mom, McDormand could've had the entire movie to herself, and "Laurel Canyon" would've been a much more exciting place to hang out for a while. Delightful alterative to bloated Oscar contenders... I loved "Laurel Canyon". That may have something to do with the fact that I spent the last two weekends getting caught up on the Oscar contenders, and it may have something to do with the fact that I adored "High Art". It may have something to do with the fact that I love small, character driven movies with appealing musical angles. Whatever the reason, this movie perked me up after a spate of overrated, overstuffed critics' picks. The plot, which may be its weakest link, is a hybrid of "Almost Famous" and "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" with a dash of "The Graduate" thrown in for good measure. Uptight, straight-laced characters clash with the alternative livestyle of family members, set against the backdrop of Los Angeles. In this case, the clashing lifestyles involve mother and son, a record producer played by Frances McDormand and her psychiatrist son, played by Christian Bale. The cast is uniformly appealing, starting with McDormand, who is playing the bizarro world twin of her straighlaced mother character in "Almost Famous". She slips effortlessly into the role; every mannerism is perfect. Who hasn't known a woman like Jane? Kate Beckinsale beguils as Jane's uptight, overachieving future daughter-in-law. Their flirtation is set in motion by Ian, Jane's latest lover, a British singer who may well be on his way to being the next big thing. Running parallel to this threesome is a more restrained fling between Bale and the gorgeous Natasha McElhone, both medical residents who take their jobs and commitments far more seriously than the other three. Some will deride this movie as being cliche-ridden, although that quick-to-judge glibness overlooks the fact that beneath some of the stock situations there are new things here. I've never seen a movie about a woman seducing her future daughter-in-law, or have seen moments as honest as those between Bale and McElhone, as they piece together their attraction to each other and what they can do about it. Beckinsale and Bale aren't self-indulgent or mismatched, like many cinematic cheating couples; they just aren't fulfilled yet as a couple, and this movie marks one stage in their progress. This isn't a perfect movie, but it's a good one. I enjoyed all the performances and look forward to seeing this director's next work. dreamy! sexy! loved it! I have seen LAUREL CANYON twice and really fell under its spell. Frances McDormand is amazing, Alessandro Nivola is quite a sexy discovery, Kate Beckinsale is lovely (if the most under-developed of the characters) and Christian Bale is great as the stick-in-the-mud son. I found the whole thing very dreamy, more like a mood than a movie. I find it a bit funny how many people are bashing this movie -- I found it thoughtful and I think there is more going on below the surface than some of the haters are seeing. The film is actually quite deep, it's just hiding under a patina of superficiality. Seriously. Loved it! And I will buy the DVD to pause and slo-mo scenes with Mr. Nivola. Buy Laurel Canyon at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Laurel Canyon Search with the Priority Search Engine on Laurel Canyon This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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