BEGINNERS
Written and Directed by: Mike Mills
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Mélanie Laurent, Goran Visnjic and Mary Page Keller
BEGINNERS is based on true events in the life of director Mike Mills. Oliver (Ewan McGregor, playing “Mills”) is told by his septuagenarian father Hal (Christopher Plummer, who is fantastic) that he is in fact homosexual. As his father embraces the gay lifestyle, however, they’re dealt another twist: Hal has cancer. Oliver is forced to get to know his father all over again as Hal faces the devastating disease. It may not sound like it from that description, but BEGINNERS is a comedy, and a great one at that.
In addition to his re-developing relationship with his ailing father, Oliver finds a romantic relationship when he meets French actress Anna (Mélanie Laurent) at a costume party. He’s come as Sigmund Freud, she as a vagabond waif. Because she has laryngitis, she communicates by writing on a notepad. Her intelligence and wit bring him out of his melancholy shell, just when he needs it most. It’s one of the cuter meet-cutes I’ve seen lately (and being a romcom junkie, I’ve seen them all).
There’s not much in terms of traditional conflict in BEGINNERS, but even with what little there is, it’s emotionally arresting. It’s more inner conflict driven. Hal struggles to tell his partner, Andy (ER’s Goran Visnjic) his sickness has gotten worse. While Oliver, distraught over his father’s death and soldiering on with life, can’t illustrate a satisfactory album cover as his past keeps affecting his work. These relatively small sad moments lead to some huge, wonderful breakthroughs for the characters. Unlike most Hollywood films, this never leads to any hysterical fits or breakdowns.
The film is filled with heaps of charm too. Oliver and Anna have a particularly sweet and funny date, roller skating through a hotel. Arthur, the Jack Russell Terrier who speaks to Oliver in subtitles, gives the picture lots of levity and practically steals the show.
Photo montages narrated by McGregor move along at a brisk pace to give us both humorous and touching insights into Hal and Oliver’s past. Moving between past and present is adeptly handled, in particular when Oliver recalls his late mother (played by Mary Page Keller).
If BEGINNERS has a fault, it does get a little clunky at the end of act two, after Anna moves in with Oliver. But overall, this film feels like it was bathed in warm sunshine (just like the beginnings of new relationships often are). There is a lot of beauty here – even on such a small scale. Overall, it’s a clever, touching, and witty little gem.
4.5 out of 5
