Image courtesy of truetwilight.comDirector: Jason Reitman .
Actors: George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick.
Where: Tottenham Court Road Odeon, London.
Last Sunday in the Observer Philip French described this not only as Clooney's 'best role' but also his 'best performance yet.' Big praise indeed and not far from how TGD viewed the work of the lead actor in this amusing and entertaining directional follow-up to Juno for Jason Reitman. Even the stiff seats and this drab cinema couldn’t put us off this one.
Many (including the Coen Brothers) may argue that Clooney’s involvement in O Brother, Where Art Thou? should feature as high on his list of best performances. Anna Kendrick supports superbly as a colleague and fellow 'Corporate Downsizer' who travels around the US with Ryan Bingham (Clooney) sacking people.
Although the two start as enemies they grow closer after Kendrick’s character begins to realise what’s involved in the soul destroying occupation and also experiences some personal heartbreak of her own. Happy singleton Bingham starts to fall in love with a women who seems to be his female equivalent and they continue a casual relationship meeting in hotels in various parts of the country.
Although the film ends with clips suggesting that however bad life gets, you can get by with a little help from your friends (or your family in this case), it’s not necessarily a parable that solely reinforces the strength of married life. That might be too one-dimensional for Reitman and in a couple of scenes the sour side of married life is left exposed for all to see. With this in mind, casting George Clooney as the successful, but also sensitive, bachelor is the real master-stroke here.
Rating: 8/10
Comments: Not quite of the standard of Juno but a great follow-up. It's impossible not to enjoy Clooney's interpretation of this character.