The second film I saw during my hot weekend in Chicago (hot thanks to summer, see) was the newly released new film directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Road to Perdition, Revolutionary Road). Mr. Kate Winslet is one of my favorite directors; I have enjoyed all of his movies that I've seen, though I have not yet seen Revolutionary Road. He has a talent for eliciting some powerful and intimate emotions from his actors and performers, regardless of the prevailing mood of the piece. Thus, it was fitting that this film, a small and intimate picture about starting a new family, should have him at the helm.
In Away We Go, Burt (John Krasinski - Jim!) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) are firmly unmarried but deeply committed to each other, and they are expecting their first child together. When they learn that Burt's eccentric parents (Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels), who they were relying on to help with the baby, are moving overseas and renting out their house, they realize that the world is literally open to them in terms of where they can move and put down roots, and so, they decide to visit a few friends in various locations around the country. While this exercise is initially designed to explore possible places to raise a family while maintaining their decidedly bohemian lifestyle, the friends they find themselves visiting, all parents themselves, become lessons in parenting and how Burt and Verona do not want to raise their first child. What's more, even when they find examples of good parenting, they soon realize that life as parents will not be all smiles and laughter, even though such a life may be fulfilling in the end. Their travels also become a means by which they can analyze their own life paths and see how their life experiences may affect their parental attitudes in the future.
I think the All Movie Guide review at the bottom of the film's Spout page used the best words to encapsulate the point and thrust of this picture: each location to which Burt and Verona travel is not so much an exploration of physical landscapes but of emotional landscapes. Each diversely different location, including Phoenix, Montreal, and Miami, provides Burt and Verona a new lesson, and it's truly meaningful how the couple - who are quite different themselves even as they seem to fit together like hands in gloves - relate to each of the parenting models and to their own lives as they begin to change.
This picture works because Mendes brings a simplicity to the proceedings. He does not overcomplicate the already complex issues Burt and Verona are grappling with; he relies solely on dialogue, sounds, and images to paint an emotional portrait, and his artistry is brilliant. Away We Go sneaks up on you. You expect the film to be pleasant, at least, as you begin to spot the chemistry between the two lead characters, but you never expect it to be profound and extremely touching, particularly with two good comedic actors at the forefront and a bevy of interesting and equally excellent supporting performers, including Allison Janney, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Melanie Lynskey, and, of course, O'Hara and Daniels in the background. The end of the film leaves you feeling satisfied and hopeful but with the real and very relatable afterthought that Burt and Verona are bracing for impact. Mendes simply has a considerable talent at using symbols (in this case, friendships) to belie deeper meanings in an almost poetic way, and this film is no exception, even if it will never have the fanfare of his previous works. Also, each of his films contain some interesting quirk or idiosyncrasy, and Away We Go is no exception, using the main characters' free spirits as foundation for their emotional struggles.
The film would also not be so winning and engaging if it weren't for Krasinski and Rudolph. While there were occasions where I may have had trouble buying Rudolph's performance as sincere--after all, she's played many a crazy character on Saturday Night Live, and this was the first pseudo-dramatic role I've seen her play and only because the presence of her comedic trademarks were subtly felt--she was still a joy to watch, and Krasinki has a gift for playing natural, though this character was not a far cry from Jim Halpert on the Office. The bigger joy of this film was seeing the turns by the supporting actors - Janney as a particularly boorish and clueless mother with a gift for saying the most inappropriate thing in any given situation; Gyllenhaal as a new age mother prone to breast feeding her children well past infancy as well as her colleagues' children too; the always divine and rapturously funny O'Hara and Daniels as Burt's parents, and so on.
I didn't love this film, though, only because I couldn't relate to it completely. I have never experienced the joys of parenthood or the onset of pregnancy, so there was a disconnect for me, but I think that anyone who has been pregnant or is a parent will highly appreciate this picture. That's not a flaw as much as it is an honest opinion - the main characters were very close to my age, and I related to their free, bohemian spirits, but I feel so far away from having children that I struggled to maintain a connection to these characters.
That's not to say that the film isn't wonderfully and smartly written, directed, and performed and isn't recommendable. If nothing else, it is completely touching, and because of the way the emotions being portrayed subtly wrap their vines around the viewer, ensnaring him or her before realizing it, the film is anything but manipulative. In fact, the ending, though a bit abrupt, leaves room for interpretation and reflection, and Mendes never panders to the audience, even if Burt and Verona's decision in the end may have been the obvious choice all along. On the patented ratings scale, I'm inclined to rate Away We Go with an 8 for having minor flaws but being very good. There were some parts that dragged in pacing, and I was not as convinced by Rudolph's performance, but all in all, the movie was enjoyable. I'm not sure if it passes the test, though. While I enjoyed it, I haven't decided if I'm going to devote any part of my collection to Mendes, and this would be my least favorite film of his that I've seen (though, that isn't saying much, as I really like his other films, and none of his films could be what you call bad); on the other hand, if and when I have children or begin a life with a committed love partner, this film might have more meaning for me. I guess I'll hold off until one or more of these possible futures presents itself and then rewatch the film. In the meantime, the film is highly recommendable to anyone just interested in hearing a good story about new beginnings in life - as, after all, I'm sure we all think "away we go" when big changes are before us.