Get Low

"A thousand years ago, he was the most interesting man I'd ever met."



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Plot Summary: Set in 1930's Tennessee, a crazy recluse comes into town for the first time in 4 years to plan a good ol' par-tay. But this ain't any ol' par-tay - this is a funeral par-tay. But this ain't any ol' funeral par-tay either - this is his funeral par-tay. And he wants to have it while he's still alive. And he wants people to come who have a craaaaaazy story to tell about him. He'll cap off the evening by sharing his own reasons for being sooooo crazy and running off to be a hermit in the woods.

The plot alone was enough to hook me. But Bill Murray in another quirky, serious role seals the deal. I know he's supposedly a total ass in real life, but honestly I don't care when it comes to him. It's not like he's in the public eye being a douche or saying things like "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world" (I'm looking at you, Mel). Bill is just a cocky, arrogant, jerk - but as long as he keeps giving us performances like the ones in Broken Flowers, Lost in Translation, or The Royal Tenenbaums, then he can be that way all he wants and I'll still buy tickets to his movies. Mel, not so much...

Bill's done a great thing with his career. He's established that he can do mainstream comedy brilliantly starting as early as Saturday Night Live in the 70s. But what he's done over the last 15 or so years is choosing (mostly) smart and risky characters in quirky, independent films. He's unleashed this vulnerable side, absent from earlier work, breathing life into the characters he portrays. I hope that trend continues with Get Low.

There are other great actors as well, of course. Sissy Spacek, crazy or not, is still a great actress. And then there's the Robert Duvall, who's been in everything from Bullit to the Godfather to even [shudder] Four Christmases. I'm excited to see them all.

The whole set-up sounds intriguing, and the trailer definitely leaves me wanting to know what he's going to say to the attending crowd or how it's all going to go down. I'm also on this 1930's nostalgia kick. I have no idea why, but early 20th century America is just so fascinating to me. The country was on the verge of a major cultural shift leading up to WWII.

Unfortunately, I don't think Get Low be getting a wide release and might wind up just playing in smaller theaters. That's just the way it goes with these movies sometimes, unless it's called Little Miss Sunshine or Juno. Luckily, there's an incredible theater a couple miles down the street called Kendall Square Cinema, which will most likely be playing this. Sadly, I don't get to go so often even though I'm just as big a fan of these small, quirky kinds of movies as I am huge popcorn blockbusters like Transformers. There's a certain mindset you have to go in to them with in order to be fully appreciative. Hopefully I'll get a chance to see it in the theater.

The Verdict: In the theater