Later #35: a movie: 'Somewhere'

Saw the movie ‘Somewhere,’ directed by the princess of cool, Sofia Coppola, and starring Stephen Dorff and 11-year old, Elle Fanning. A successful young actor, Johnny Marco, has become the next big thing in Hollywood, and so leads the stereotypical life, attending photo ops and publicity events, driving a fast car and willingly accepting the generous offerings of female companionship.

Johnny is not the brightest spark, an untrained actor who we assume stumbled into his fortuitous situation. This fact leaves his character and the whole point of the story, remarkably difficult to comprehend. Fanning plays Johnny’s daughter from an earlier relationship, Cleo, who is inexplicably abandoned by her mother. She then follows Johnny in his fantasy world, although handling it rather more maturely than Johnny does. For a short period, Cleo becomes a new focal point for Johnny’s life, although little seems to change. There is a cathartic moment when we need to decide whether Johnny learns something from the relationship he develops with his daughter, or merely abandons all responsibility for his actions in the vain of his life to date. The lack of dialogue will make this hard watching for some, which requires a solid appreciation for the visuals and the great music by Phoenix. It’s one of those ‘love it or hate it’ movies, but you’re likely to get the best from it if you can discuss the movie with a companion straight afterwards. 7/10

http://www.focusfeatures.com/somewhere