Rick (2003)
If 2001's festival fave "Bartleby"
was directed by Hal Hartley, it might turn out to
be something like "Rick," a cool, edgy and dark tale
from filmmaker Curtiss Clayton.
"Rick" starts off cool with Bill
Pullman going to work in an office as edgy as, well,
as if David Lynch directed "Bartleby." And here, suddenly,
we realize exactly why Lynch put Pullman at the front
of "Lost Highway." Pullman is amazing here as the
title character. His knack at portraying a smarmy
asshole is deliciously fun to watch. His work with
hottie Aaron Stanford as they banter around Daniel
Handler's crisp and snappy Mametian dialogue is masterful.
The first scene between these two is one of the most
fun and absurd meetings to occur on film in decades.
Even better is the appearance of
the always wonderful Sandra Oh. In the Oh- pening
of the film, the actress proves once again what a
valuable asset to indie film she has become. When
Oh, Pullman and Stanford share the screen, sparks
fly. And if that wasn't enough to captivate us, soon
Dylan Baker is in the film and things really begin
to get interesting.
As "Rick" unspools, it becomes more
and more epic and operatic in its scope and that is
no accident. It's helpful, in a way, to know that
the film is based somewhat on "Rigoletto." That is
why Pullman's character is named Rick O'Lette and
the restaurant mentioned in the film is called Verdi's.
But knowing the story behind "Rigoletto" is not necessary.
I certainly don't know anything about the classic
opera. But it did help me to understand its scope
and plot and to assume that this modern updating uses
e-mail in place of love notes and business position
as a symbol of class and status. Of all the films
I've seen that are considered "modern updates" of
classic stories, "Rick" is simply one of the best.
Beautifully photographed, the film
is wonderfully dressed and perfectly lit. The pacing
keeps us engrossed and the camera work easily moves
us into the story. An early scene set in a trendy
club is really cool. It looks like the kind of set
that might have been designed for a club in the midst
of Terry Gilliam's "Brazil." And before I go much
further, let me say that Clayton is not a rip-off
artist nor is he doing any sort of homage here. This
film is all his own. It's just that certain elements
of "Rick" reminded me of things that I liked in other
people's films: Hartley's verbal style, Mamet's dialogue,
Gilliam's sets, Lynch's eeriness.
"Rick" has indie hit written all
over it. And rightly so.
Note:
Clayton is best known as the editor
of many films, especially the 90's work of Gus Van
Sant.
Scripter Handler is best known as
Lemony Snicket.
The film played at SXSW in 2004.
The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in
Seeptember 2003.
Viewed in April 2004 on a DVD provided
by the filmmaker.
