Sometimes all it takes to gain my interest is a distinctive poster. And repeated suggestions on Netflix. And a good IMDb score. I hadn't heard of this movie when it was brand new, and I still knew very little about it when I decided to add it. Only one name on it was familiar to me, and just barely. Even the production companies and distributor meant nothing to me. The fact that David Fincher and Spike Jonze had presented it made it all the more of a gamble for my liking. But I gamble a little more than I used to.
In the silent era, Alexandria (Catinca Untaru), a young Romanian girl who moved to L.A., has broken her arm in a fall. At the hospital, she wanders in on Roy (Lee Pace), a Hollywood stuntman bedridden from his own fall, which is enough to arouse her interest. Roy starts spinning an epic yarn illustrated in her imagination, about a team's journey for justice against a tyrant, with a chance of love for the main hero on the side. But it soon becomes clear that he's not just feeling friendly: He wants to motivate her to swipe morphine for him so he'll continue. And when he says it's to help him "sleep," that's a half-truth....
You may have noticed the comedy tag. This comes largely from what you might expect when a man makes up a wild story as he goes along and his conception clashes with the listener's. Roy doesn't use advanced words or ideas, but Alexandria's youth and low mastery of English kinda warp things. For example, when he speaks of an "Indian," she pictures a man from India, despite his use of "squaw" and "wigwam." (FWIW, the director is from India, and I suspect that some Bollywood influence would explain the bright colors that dominate the screen.) Sometimes she insists on revisions or twists out of left field, which certainly help to keep things fresh if the over-the-top cliches alone don't do it for you. But Roy's mind is a pretty interesting place on its own; I'd never have thought to cast Charles Darwin as an action hero and Dr. Dolittle type who steals all his ideas from a hidden monkey.
Alexandria's visions bring to mind The Wizard of Oz as we recognize actors from the hospital scenes. This increases the importance of taking breaks from the fairy tale. I only wish we'd gotten to know the hospital staff and guests better, especially before their counterparts turned up, but that might make the film too long and slow for modern family entertainment.
Of course, the "family" part is pretty tentative anyway. The fairy tale heroes are bandits and sometimes show rather appalling morals even considering. Makes sense for a teller who encourages theft and dishonesty, which Alexandria already practices a little. His telling takes a much darker turn after he loses hope of dying on his own terms. (Note that his troubles go beyond a pair of broken legs.) No wonder other adults don't want Alexandria to keep going near Roy.
Despite moments of irritation, it makes for a good deal of fun. This is pretty much the creative effort I'd hoped certain others would be. Maybe it helps that I didn't go in with high hopes, in which case I apologize if I just ruined it for you. But check it out when you're up for a mix of genres.
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