Review: Laggies

by Trevor Kirkendall

★★★

Movies like “Laggies” make me hopeful for the future of cinema. Here we have a brand new screenwriter and an emerging director. People like to point the lack of talented women working in Hollywood, and they make an excellent point. Hollywood seems to have a misplaced aversion to hiring women in creative roles. It can’t be because of the lack of talent though. There are plenty of talented filmmakers working in the independent scene just waiting for that big call. Case in point, Lynn Shelton’s “Laggies,” a small yet very well done indie comedy.

“Laggies” follows Megan (Keira Knightley), a young lady in her mid-to-late twenties who never quite grew out of high school. She lives with her photographer boyfriend Anthony (Mark Webber) who would like to see her get a job, but doesn’t really have to courage to force her into it. Megan is just content with spinning one of those wooden advertisement signs in front of her father Ed’s (Jeff Garlin) accounting firm. Even her best friend Allison (Ellie Kemper) is concerned about her attitude toward life. Everyone just thinks she needs to grow up.

One night, Anthony proposes to her unexpectedly. Megan doesn’t know how to handle it, so she wanders off into the night and meets Annika (Chloë Grace Moretz), a high school girl looking for booze with her friends. She finds that she enjoys hanging out with them more than her boring grown up friends. She sees an opening to get away from her life for a while by telling Anthony she’s going to a career building seminar out of town. But instead of going, she moves in with Annika and her single dad Craig (Sam Rockwell). She hopes that hanging out with Annika and her crazy friend Misty (Kaitlyn Dever) will help her figure out what she wants to do with her life. But she finds out she might actually have more in common with Craig than Annika and her friends. 

“Laggies” is both funny and a genuinely heartfelt film. It’s an accurate portrayal of today’s twenty-somethings who experience what can only be called a quarter-life crisis. I know, because I’m only a handful of years removed from being there myself. The difference between Megan and myself is I actively worked. Megan does nothing else other than watch TV at her parent’s house rather than looking for a job. Let’s be honest, I would rather be doing that but people have to work.

Director Shelton’s handling of the subject is spot on. She understands the unique dilemmas of both her lead characters and is able to portray them from an unbiased perspective. We are, in turn, able to empathize equally with both Megan and Annika despite their age difference. And maybe the age differences between them and the viewer, in some cases.

Shelton’s job is made much easier thanks to an incredibly polished script from Andrea Seigel. For her first script, Seigel chose what appears to be a pretty personal topic for herself. It’s as well crafted as some of the better scripts to come out this year. All the characters compliment one another, including those in the minor roles. There’s no extra fat to trim off of this screenplay. Everything flows seamlessly: each scene, each sequence and each act.

“Laggies” is a very enjoyable comedy, but it’s not without its own minor faults. It is a pretty straightforward story, and doesn’t leave the audience with much to ponder about. That isn’t always a bad thing, per se, but it probably won’t be one of those movies you think about a year or two down the road. But I think the one thing we can take away from “Laggies” is that Shelton and Seigel are very refined storytellers who have an unlimited amount of potential in them. Whether or not they work together again remains to be seen. But if “Laggies” is any indication on what they’re both individually capable of achieving, we’re in for some remarkable films from the two of them.  

Review: The Way Way Back

by Trevor Kirkendall
★★★½

There’s a comedian I like who tells a joke about sitting in the back seat of a station wagon on a family vacation. Not the back seat but the way, way back seat; the one that faces in reverse. He says that the kids sitting in the back seat of the car tend to have a completely different vacation than everyone else in the car. The comedian wonders, “I wonder what all these signs say?” I think that this particular seat in the old station wagons is what writers/directors Nat Faxon and Jim Rash had in mind when they wrote their brilliant new film “The Way Way Back”. Their main character starts the film sitting in this seat and throughout the rest of the film has completely different vacation than anyone else. This one shot should be enough foreshadowing of the continued brilliance that will follow.

“The Way Way Back” follows 14 year old Duncan (Liam James) during his summer vacation with his mom Pam (Toni Collette), her boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell) and his daughter Stephanie (Zoe Levin). They’re spending a couple of months at Trent’s beach house. Next door lives the persistently intoxicated Betty (Allison Janney), who has no social filter, and her kids Susanna (AnnaSophia Robb) and Peter (River Alexander). We also meet Trent’s friends Kip (Rob Corddry) and Joan (Amanda Peet).

Duncan can’t stand Trent or any of his friends. He doesn’t understand what his mom sees in him. He begins to stay as far away from these people as possible, and begins taking long bike rides around the area. He discovers a nearby water park called Water Wizz and meets the park’s eccentric manager Owen (Sam Rockwell). Owen likes Duncan and all his awkward quirks so he hires him to be a part time help around the park. At Water Wizz, he becomes well liked by the parks frequent visitors and the park’s employees including Caitlin (Maya Rudolph) along with Roddy and Lewis (film’s directors Nat Faxon and Jim Rash).

Duncan’s attitude toward life in general begins to change as a result of his time with Owen working at Water Wizz. He even begins to attract the attention of the pretty girl living next door, Susanna. The two begin to form a friendship, something that might not have otherwise happened without his new life at the waterpark. He’s not even really afraid to share what’s on his mind with his mom and with Trent.

“The Way Way Back” is a brilliant display of what a coming-of-age movie should look like. The dynamic of every character in this film is written with such depth that you quickly lose yourself in the story. There are many moments where you could easily see yourself in Duncan’s shoes, even without the dysfunctional broken home element.

Oscar winning writers Nat Faxon and Jim Rash make their directorial debut with this film, and they’ve hit a home run. They’ve proven their screenwriting expertise on Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants” (which won them their Oscar) was no fluke. The amount of character development in their script vastly exceeds anything else we’ve seen this year. If this much characterization can be packed into such a short script, why can’t we get even a small portion of that in other films?

While the writing of “The Way Way Back” is fantastic, what really drives this film are the various performances from the whole cast. Liam James is on camera for the entire film, so its up to him to carry it. That’s no easy task for anyone, especially for someone his age. But James really takes command of his role. He should remind you of someone you knew when you were that age; if not a friend of yours, than maybe that quiet kid in the back of the class, or maybe even yourself.

The supporting roles, especially those of Toni Collette and Steve Carell, help to bring James’ character up to very a empathetic level. Collette is excellent as always. While she wants to look out for the best interests of her son, she’s also trying to find her happiness in this new life of hers. She’s torn and Collette really showcases it well. On the other hand, we’re used to seeing Carell in goofy and lightheaded rolls, but here he is downright mean. Every line and every glance toward James is that of sarcasm and disgust. He’s lovable in many films, but not here. Here, you have to hate him.

Sam Rockwell once again proves that he’s one of the most underrated and underappreciated actors working today. He turns in yet another unforgettable performance as Duncan’s best friend. He plays the role much like he’s done in the past; its a classic Rockwell performance. But he also brings out a little more depth that he hasn’t show in too many of his films (if you haven’t seen him in “Moon”, that’s one to find). In a film full of many bright spots, he shines the brightest.

“The Way Way Back” is a truly great film. Its a film with so much heart that’s delicately balanced between its scenes of emotion and its scenes of humor. There are so many memorable parts from the time it begins until the time it ends. The ending of the film may feel a little abrupt, but that’s the only thing I can find to complain about. In a summer full of movies that have underperformed expectations, “The Way Way Back” comes out of nowhere and surprises.