Sunday, July 15, 2012

Young Hearts Run Free.

Film: Like Crazy
Year: 2011
Director: Drake Doremus
Written by: Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones
Starring: Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlie Bewley, Alex Kingston, Oliver Muirhead, Finola Hughes, Chris Messina.
Running time: 86 min.

Unless you're counting famous people, I guess you could say that I've never been in love. So when Like Crazy came knocking on my door, I didn't know whether I'd consumed with the tale of two young people who fall hopelessly in love with each other, only to be torn apart. Luckily, I had adorable people like Felicity Jones and Anton Yelchin playing young lovebirds Anna and Jacob. Also playing to my advantage was the fact that this isn't your typical Hollywood love story. It isn't the kind filled with dreadful pop songs and half a tonne of sugar. It doesn't even fit into the twee-romance-between-two-hipsters-indie category. Writer and director Drake Doremus based the film off his real life experience with a long-distance relationship. Added in with a considerably low budget of $250,000 and the fact that basically all of the dialogue was improvised (which makes me wonder why there were two writers, but anyway...), Like Crazy tells a raw story of love, the hard way.


Jacob meets Anna, a British student hoping to become a journalist, at university in America. They fall in love with each other, even with their impending graduation looming over them as a reminder that Anna's visa will end and she'll have to return to Britain. Anna decides to extend her stay with Jacob, thus stretching her visa out for a little longer before she returns home. After that, she tries to return to Los Angeles as a tourist, but access is denied as she violated her visa, sending her back to Britain without seeing Jacob. This throws them into an unexpected, awkward long-distance relationship while Anna hopes that her lawyer can sort out something to lift the ban so she can return to see Jacob again. In the meantime, they have to make do and move on with their lives, each becoming successful in their careers on opposite sides of the world. Both of them try to engage in relationships with other people: Jacob with his colleague Sam (Jennifer Lawrence) and Anna with her neighbour Simon (Charlie Bewley), but they still find a profound connection with each other which prevents them from moving on. The big question is, though: how will their relationship fare once the ban is lifted and they can freely be together?


There are two ways you can view this film: the cynical way or the natural way. I could have veered more to the cynical team since I have no way of relating to how these two people were feeling, but Yelchin and Jones (especially Jones), were what pulled me back. Even though Doremus fast-forwards through their initial love affair, it is still plain to see that these two were in ecstasy when they were in each other's company. Things slow down once Anna and Jacob are separated, which is what separates this from other romantic films: the focus is mainly on the dark days, rather than lingering on the blossoming love between the two and having to resort to artificial schmaltz. However, there are several moments when you question the actions of Anna and Jacob. Why would Anna decide to stay if she knew it was so wrong? Why didn't Jacob just move to Britain if he loved Anna so much? And most of all, why did Anna and Jacob decide to marry at such a young age, just so they could be together? There's lots of questions that you could ask that just don't make sense in a hardened, cynical world. These people do things that can't be easily reasoned with or justified. They act on impulse instead of instinct. But you can see, through Yelchin and Jones, that they're blinded by their rose-coloured glasses, which eventually fade as the movie goes on. The only way it can make sense is if you stick those rose-coloured glasses on as well, and your heart will break as the colour starts to disappear.


Considering the large majority of the film's dialogue is improvised, Yelchin and Jones do a tremendous job of keeping everything going. Jones' performance especially was one of the biggest reasons that I took to this film. She fills the film up like a ray of sunshine, projecting her fragility, naivety and impulsiveness. Her performance is in the same league as Carey Mulligan's in An Education, as they both portray young woman blinded by love, only to see it disintegrate. Jennifer Lawrence provides good support as Jacob's other woman, as she has to deal with the fact that she'll never be Jacob's one and only. The film pretty much works on the talent of it's cast, with Doremus lensing them as if he were a spectator. I wouldn't say that this should be his claim to fame - it is what I call a "beginner movie". The talent is there, he just needs a few more tries to develop his style. At the moment, he feels a little obsessed with staying within the indie barriers, but over time he'll get more innovative.

The end to Like Crazy absolutely broke me, mainly because it made me realise the Blue Valentine qualities that it has folded away. I can't help but think that Anna and Jacob are destined for the fate of Dean and Cindy, as much as I'd like to think otherwise.

What I got:







25 comments:

  1. I actually wouldn't mind seeing this. Looks quite good. If it's anything like Blue Valentine, I'm sure I'll like it.

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    1. Sorry for the off-topic, but how do you manage to be here first? :D

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    2. I think you might like it. There's a lot of New Wave influence in it.

      And Tyler's always here first since we're from New Zealand and he's always online when I post. We're so in sync!

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    3. Yeah, I always have twitter open on my computer so I can catch new posts as they're published. Comes in handy.

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  2. I forgot that Jen Lawrence is in this film. Have to watch it then! Besides, it seemed like an interesting story. I wonder if I find myself on the cynical side...

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    1. Don't expect big things from Jennifer's appearance - she's not in it that much. However, I do think that you'll like it.

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  3. I really loved this one; it was my second favorite of last year.

    Agreed that Jones is magnificent. She brings so much beauty and quiet pathos to her role, it's just stunning.

    However, I think Doremus shows incredible talent. He lets the action tell the story, understanding that film is primarily a visual medium, which is always refreshing, since so many movies rely on carefully sculpted dialogue. Those shots of Anna and Charlie at the dining room table and the last scene are masterful film-making, as is much of the film.

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    1. I did love those shots of Anna and Simon at the dining room table. And the end is one of my favourites from last year.

      Jones is really magnificent. I've loved her in everything I've seen her in. She's just so stunning and down-to-earth.

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  4. Great review! Unfortunately, I reacted the cynical way when I saw the film. Jones is fantastic though. Her performance was the highlight of the film for me.

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    1. That's fair enough. Jones was the highlight for me as well!

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  5. I loved this film. I would go rave about it to my friends, how beautiful yet heartbreaking the film is. How not a lot of people haven't watched this (at least in my circle of friends, including those who love movies), I wouldn't know.

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    1. It seemed to pass by without much notice, apart from a little bit of Oscar buzz for Jones. Which is really sad - it deserves more of an audience!

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  6. I adored this film! While I loved Felicity Jones, I feel like Anton hardly gets any love. He was so great in this too, and was the mixed-up one in the middle of it all, having to deal with the results of Anna's mistakes, having it left up to him whether the relationship continues or not, calling the shots. Anton broke my heart in this, as the boy who didn't know what to do. Great review, glad someone else really liked it as well!

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    1. Anton was brilliant, especially because of how he reacted to everything that Anna was doing. I've always loved Anton, he looks like the kind of guy who I want to cuddle! Haha.

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  7. I will have to check this out at some point

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  9. I liked it! It was refreshing to see a movie about two people in love who want it to work, but they know it can't. The final scene of them in the shower made me think they'll try hard at their relationship, but in the end it just won't work.

    That's what I got from it anyways.

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    1. Yes, this was a very refreshing to see. I think I got the same thing as you, but I don't think they're destined for much happiness unfortunately.

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  10. I had such high expectations for this film. I should've tempered them a bit since I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong, some of the moments in this film I loved as a film maker. I enjoyed the use of timelapse footage of them spending the summer together and then the shower scene with the interspersed footage of the better times.

    I guess it's an interesting comparison to Blue Valentine. I never thought of it that way before. Felicity Jones got a new fan from this movie though since I thought she was fantastic.

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    1. Ha, I had quite big expectations of it too. It just reached them.

      I've always loved Felicity Jones, but she was beyond fantastic in this one!

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  11. Not really a film that appeals to me. But I am pleased you enjoyed it!!

    :-)

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    1. Yeah, you're probably to macho for this one ;)

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  12. I've been meaning to see it for a long time...now you just made it go get the DVD or something:) I'm up for a good, natural love story! Thanks!

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You mustn't be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling.

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