Search Tut's Tutillating Reviews

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

FILM REVIEWS: In A World

Being a champion of low-budget indie comedies, I’m kind of obligated to give In A World a fresh review. But that in no way means that the movie is any less good. Thus far, the blockbuster season of 2013 has ranged from mediocre and forgettable (Pacific Rim) to downright terrible (Man of Steal Your Money). But it has been quite a year for quiet dramas and comedies.  In A World is one of these select few that has forgone the typical stupidity that seems to plague movies nowadays and decided to go about its story the way all movies should: With a scalpel, not a sledgehammer.


In A World is the story of Carol (the writer and director of the film, Lake Bell), a woman trying to make her way in the movie voice-over business, a field usually controlled by men. This is a simple premise, and a clever one, but it sometimes smacks you in the face with its feminist attitude and preachy tone a little too often. Nevertheless, it’s an entertaining setup, and will definitely make you feel inadequate about the way your voice sounds. Also, Carol’s competitive and obnoxious father is trying to sabotage her at every chance he gets, and is mentoring a young voice-over artist (who plays the ‘son he never had’ role).


However, I found it more than a little hard to believe that a father would so blatantly and unrepentantly try to sabotage his daughter’s career (to the point of coming out of retirement just to do it). His performance was clearly the weakest part of the movie, both in terms of over-the-top craziness and just unacceptable dialogue. But fortunately, the movie more than makes up for any of its weak parts with the incredible performance that Lake Bell gives. She’s fucking electric, in a way so ordinary yet powerful that it makes it hard for me to name exactly what quality about her performance makes it so great. But I suppose that it’s just believable. She doesn’t go too off-the-wall or act ridiculous like much of the supporting cast is tempted to do, and she just plays the part 100%. Perhaps it’s because she has experience in the field of voice acting, but she definitely know how to play the character. It just seemed honest, straightforward, and realistic. And I respect that.




Adding to the film are minor performances by the supporting cast, from Michaela Watkins as Carol’s sister to Rob Corddry as the hapless yet lovable goofball married to her. He really shines in his role, and even though it isn’t really a big one, he does a lot with what he’s given. In fact, the whole cast should be commended, but here’s another flaw: Although the cast worked great, I couldn’t shake the feeling that all these loose ends and plot points didn’t belong together in a movie. It made the film seem scattershot and uneven at times, and it couldn’t seem to focus in on the tone or even the storyline that it wanted to follow. Carol’s relationships with her father, sister, and workplace boyfriend are hard enough to juggle, but add in the sister’s relationship with her husband, the father mentoring the young voice actor, the voice actor banging Carol, the father’s dynamic with his trophy wife, the trophy wife’s dynamic with Carol and her sister... you might see how it could get confusing.


But really, at the end of the day, this is an enjoyable movie to watch. It may be uneven, but it’s heartfelt and legitimately funny, with moments that will undoubtedly resonate with the target audience. It’s a great movie for those in the know about the film industry, and it spoofs a lot of topical things, from squeaky-voiced women to The Hunger Games. And I do have to give it some serious credit-- the finale includes a scene in which Carol gets a big voiceover gig, but only because she’s a woman-- which undercuts the feminist tone of the movie to a certain degree. This makes the blatant message a little easier to swallow, and actually makes the audience think for a second instead of just bashing people over the head with the movie’s message.

Final Score for In A World: 7/10 stars. It’s one of the better films of the year, which is not saying much-- but it certainly is worth a watch. It balances gross humor with deftly handled drama in a way that comedies today should really be better at. This isn’t just your typical female empowerment chick flick, it actually has some depth to it. Now if only everyone’s girlfriends could start forcing them to watch this instead of The Notebook... but I guess that’s hoping for a little too much.

No comments:

Post a Comment