by NEVIL GIBSON
The acerbic American comedian W.C. Fields once said you should never work in films with kids or animals.
In fact, animals, or more specifically dogs, have been a popular staple in the movies since the days of Rin Tin Tin and Lassie.
More recently, such hits as Marley and Me have kept up the profile of both clever and cute canines, although Marley was more than a handful for his owners.
As comic characters, they seldom come better equipped than the attention-seeking Jack Russell breed.
Beginners (Focus/Hopscotch) is a quirky, low-key cross-generational comedy drama in which Alfred (the Jack Russell) plays a key role, if not a speaking one. However, he does get subtitles and manages to squeeze himself into as many frames as possible.
Based on writer-director Mike Mills’ own experience, it explores a son’s feelings for both his mother and father after their deaths — the regrets, the recriminations and the remembrances. After the mother’s death, the father (Christopher Plummer) “comes out” after a marriage in which he had hidden his homosexuality — which took its toll on them both as well as their son (Ewan McGregor).
As a widower at 75, Plummer begins the life he felt he had denied himself. He changes the furniture and his appearance, parties hard, and even takes up with a younger lover. But tragedy strikes early as Plummer, giving Alfred a run for his money in stealing scenes, starts to succumb to cancer.
Father and son then go through another form of grieving, loss and reconciliation as both learn to appreciate each other all over again. Spurred on by his father, the son tries to find a satisfactory relationship in his 30s. He meets a wayward French actress, played by Melanie Laurent, the stunning violinist in The Concert, a slapstick comedy about Russian musicians in Paris. The casting is explained by the film’s Los Angeles setting, but the romance initially heads nowhere; he lacks commitment, and she proves elusive as well as deceptive.
Observing all this is Alfred, who, at one stage, warns McGregor: “Tell her the darkness is about to drag us down unless you do something.”
This complicated state of affairs is told in a series of flashbacks, with the ubiquitous Alfred providing the links. The narrative sequences are interspersed with graphics and op art to reinforce an overall tone of melancholia amid the superficial glamour.
In telling an autobiographical story, Mills allows some techniques to clutter the already complex brew of characters and their hang-ups. As well as the ones mentioned, the father’s lover is insecure because he doesn’t feel accepted as a new member of the family.It adds up to a worthwhile experience, as many movies these days pass on characterisation in favour of sentimentality, shock elements or special effects. Beginners does not easily fit into the formula of a romantic comedy or family drama. Reactions to it may be mixed. It works on several levels and demands a high degree of empathy to characters who are far from endearing.
Mature audiences (offensive language and sexual references), 94 minutes.