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| Director: Stephen Daldry (2011) |
At face value, Extremely loud and incredibly close seems
like a sure fire winner. Its based on Jonathan Safran Foer’s
bestselling book, it has Toms Hanks in it, arguably the finest actor of the
past 20 years, and it centers on the emotional affects on a child’s wellbeing
after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. All of these elements give ELAIC the elements
to become a great, powerful film, like pieces of a perfect jigsaw which should
add up to make an incredible image. Unfortunately this isn't the case, and due
to some frustrating decisions and very aggravating characters, ELAIC fails to
meet its immense potential.
The film follows Oskar Schell, a young and troubled boy who has
a special connection to his father Thomas (Tom Hanks). Oskar may or may not
have aspergers syndrome, something that his father does his best to help him
overcome by setting him challenges called ‘reconnaissance expeditions’. These
tasks keep his mind occupied and forces him to interact with strangers, an
action that scares him. When Oskar’s father dies in the 9/11 attacks, he loses
the only person who understood and his relationship with his mother (Sandra Bullock)
becomes unstable. The film starts a year after Thomas’ death, and revolves
around Oskar finding a key in his father’s closet, a key he believes his dad
has left him to find the lock to.
The story makes good use of flashbacks that help fill in initial gaps in the narrative which inject just enough emotion into the narrative to keep things flowing. It’s in these scenes that we see the events of 9/11 as they happen. Despite how horrifying this sounds, director Stephen Daldry handles this delicate matter with the upmost sensitivity. We see Sandra bullock’s character standing in her office, looking out to see the towers smoking in the distance. In later scenes we witness footage of the collapsing of one of the towers on a television. The camera holds for a few seconds and then cuts. It’s all that’s required from these scenes, and isn't shown to the point of being manipulative or cheap. This is, after all, a very delicate matter, which also makes for the most delicate aspect of the film.
What isn't delicate though, is the main character Oskar. At
what is no fault of young actor Thomas Horn, we could well have a contender for
most annoying character of all time. He’s rude, whiny and impolite; his verbal
exchange with John Goodman’s
doorman showing the full extent of this. I understand that Oskar does have a
problem, something worsened by the loss of his father, and I can empathise
completely. But after 2 hours of screaming at trains and the persistent rattle
of his tambourine, switching the film off was looking more and more attractive.
To counter this we have the renter (Max Von Syndow), who steals the show.
Completely mute, he joins up with Oskar on his hunt across New York,
interacting by writing notes or using the yes/no tattoos that reside on his
hands. Syndow is superb here, showing that his Oscar nomination was well
deserved.
Still, for every moment of genuine emotion, there are 5 that
consist of a forced saccharine sweetness. When ELAIC flashes its true colours,
it’s a powerful, enjoyable film. But all too often it wants to be radiating a
constant feel good vibe, something that it simply fails to achieve. After what
had been a pretty solid buildup, ELAIC squanders everything with an ending so
cloying the audience is at risk of developing diabetes. But look beyond this
and its completely unlikable lead character, Extremely loud and incredibly
close is a decent film, even if it is a hollow one.
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