CMFH Film Reviews

2008, USA
Drama, Romance
Review by Deborah Dearth

READ THE REVIEW AT The Desert Sun: page 1 & page 2.
Extended version:

Announcing his retirement from acting at L.A.'s AFI Fest screening of Two Lovers, two-time Oscar nominee Joaquin Phoenix proclaimed that all future brooding will be contained to the musical stage. Choosing a somber film for his final dramatic effort, Two Lovers reunites the actor with director James Gray for the third time (We Own the Night, The Yards), tempting fate as to whether his bow out film will be a charm. The Cannes Film Festival seemed to think so, as it nominated the film for its prized Palme d'Or.

Based loosely on Fyodor Dostoevsky's short story, "White Nights," the tale unfolds delicately but honestly as facts are allowed raw exposition. Phoenix portrays Leonard, an oddly charming and sensitive man medicated for bipolar disorder and driven to passionate extremes. His introduction finds him jumping from a Brighton Beach dock, only to reemerge to a life that has been shaped for him by concerned parents (portrayed modestly by Isabella Rossellini and Israeli actor Moni Moshonov).

A humble but talented photographer, the easy road is paved by a position in his father's dry cleaning business. As his father prepares to sell the shop in order to provide for the needs of his family, Leonard is given the opportunity to stay on with the new owners through a marriage of convenience. Though Sandra (Vinessa Shaw) provides an appealingly safe route, Leonard finds himself tempted by the unattainable fruit down the hall.

Gwyneth Paltrow plays Michelle, the rough-around-the-edges, flighty victim of an affair of the I'll-leave-my-wife-any-day-now order. She is self-professed trouble as she obliviously uses Leonard to test the sincerity of her lover (Elias Koteas in a brief role). Not falling for the platonic promises, Leonard pines for more while maintaining Sandra as the prudent consolation prize.

The characters search for a better life where they can to pursue their preferred happiness, but the journey has been traveled before with more sympathetic characters. Clues drop with a thud regarding Leonard's family history, as it is mentioned that his father came to America from Israel, that Leonard is a carrier of Tay-Sachs disease and that they are Jewish (Michelle even asks what a dreidel is while examining objects in his parents' home). The importance of this central factor is subtly delivered -- almost too subtly. As his family attempts to provide him with a stable foundation, there is little emotion behind the significance.

Two Lovers delivers rough sketches with heavy-handed descriptions: Michelle is an addict, Leonard is suicidal, Sandra is sensible. Leonard's father's lifetime of hard work comes down to his son's decision to stay in the family business or run away with the girl of his misdirected dreams. And yet, the countdown delivers little anxiety to its conclusion. Whether he falls into the trap of good intentions or follows his desires, there can be no earth-shattering outcome. Perhaps this is a message about the futility of individuality or the inevitability of fate, but ultimately Two Lovers drowns in its own unclear purpose.