Editorial
Front Page - Friday, July 17, 2009
The Critic's Corner
David Laprad
I had an interesting experience seeing “Away We Go.” Halfway through the movie, the fire alarm went off. At first, those of us in the theater just sat around and looked at each other, then someone got up to leave, and the rest of us followed suit, like good sheep.
As we entered the hallway, a woman appeared and told us her son had pulled the alarm. So we all stood around and looked at each other, then another woman said she was going back into the theater to watch the film, and the rest of us did likewise.
For the next 10 minutes, no one could hear anything because the alarm was still sounding. When the staff at the theater finally shut it off, the movie froze. Again, we all sat around looking at each other until someone walked out, presumably to talk with the manager. The rest of us stayed in our seats.
A few minutes later, there was banging on the window of the projection booth. “How far back do you want me to go?” a woman said from the other side of the glass. She skipped back to where “Away We Go” was before everything went batty and off we went.
None of the above would’ve fazed Burt Farlander and Verona De Tessant, the central characters in “Away We Go.” The whole affair would’ve been just another clunky moment in their offbeat lives.
I’ll say now what becomes obvious in the opening scenes of the film: Burt and Verona are more in love with each other than any two people I’ve seen in a movie or read about in a book. And as characters in a film, they’re more genuine than most people I know. I liked them immediately, and by the midway point, my heart was aching for them to find a place in the world.
Don’t get the wrong idea: “Away We Go” isn’t a sad movie; rather, it’s one of the warmest and funniest films I’ve seen in ages. And it made me care about Burt and Verona without resorting to cheap sentimentality, swelling music or a sappy montage.
“Away We Go” also makes it easy to identify with Burt and Verona. Most of us have reached a point where we stopped in our tracks and asked, “What am I doing?”
Burt and Verona wait a little longer than most people to ask this question. We meet them in their early 30s, living a clutter-filled existence in a shack with a cardboard window, driving a clunker and doing God knows what for a living.
Burt is a college dropout who works in “insurance futures” and Verona is a freelance artist, but beyond that, they have no vision for the future. (I believe the filmmakers intentionally downplay what Burt and Verona do for a living because their jobs don’t define who they are.)
When Verona learns she’s pregnant, she finally asks, “What are we doing?” Actually, we can’t print her exact words, but they’re something like, “Are we screw-ups?” The next thing they know, they’re traveling across North America searching for a different life near relatives or friends, no matter how thin the connection.
Most of the humor in “Away We Go” is derived from the absurdity of the people Burt and Verona visit. Burt’s parents are remarkably self-absorbed, and I loved his dad’s affinity for superlatives. If Jerry Farlander were writing this review, he’d call the movie “Magnificent! Superb! Outstanding!” Then Burt and Verona go to Phoenix, where one of her friends lives. I couldn’t help wondering how Verona could’ve hung out with such a vulgar person. As a shockingly foul-mouthed, middle-aged mother, actress Allison Janney is “Terrific! Splendid! Fabulous!”
While I want to tell you more about their journey, I’d rather you find out the rest on your own. All I’ll say is “Away We Go” is one of my favorites movies of 2009 so far, and not because I’m a snob who doesn’t like action movies or goofy comedies. I enjoyed it because by the end, Burt and Verona have realized that while they might be “screw-ups,” love covers a multitude of sins.
Unlike most romantic comedies, there are no manufactured crises in “Away We Go,” and unlike most family dramas, there’s no exaggerated angst. There’s a lot of soul searching, but nothing too existential. By the time the end credits roll, Burt and Verona have found something more meaningful than an important job or a place in society; they’ve found somewhere to be together.
So you can do what the ads on TV are telling you to do and go see “Bruno” or “Transformers 2,” like good sheep. Or you can hunt down “Away We Go” and enjoy a slice of life so real, you won’t want it to end. Rating: See it, on DVD, if not at the theater.
Email David Laprad at dlaprad@hamiltoncounty herald.com.
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