People Places Things (2015) Reviews

• He's as charming as a nerd could be. Great film for people.

  jdesando2015-08-13

  Having seen Mark Ruffalo take pieces of the scenery as a bipolar dad in Infinitely Polar Bear, I was happy to settle down with a slower, more-measured, drier dad with Jermaine Clement as Will Henry in the charming People Places Things. Both dads face fatherhood with good intentions and occasionally laughs, but it's Will's good will and unassuming persona that won my heart. A recently-single graphic novelist, Will is not an aggressive dad, and yet, with the two sweetest cello playing twins (Aundrea and Gia Gadsby—watch for these two to become bigger than the Olsens) this side of Disneyland, it's not difficult just to let them play at your heartstrings, as he does. His illustrating helps us get inside the head of this brainy introvert, who otherwise would be just a nice guy. His ex, Charlie (Stephanie Allynne), is sweet and warm but has had enough of his passivity and is ready to wed bulbous Gary (Michael Chernus), who takes passive to a new level. Both men are starving artists while she is from a wealthy family, elements that give richness to what could have been a clichéd character. In the Seinfeld tradition, nothing much happens, a sure sign that everything is happening. In this Sundance Grand-Jury-Prize-nominated film, Charlie is conflicted about Will just as Will connects with his student Kat's (Jessica Williams) mom, Diane (Regina Hall), another warm character who makes you think about switching to writing comic books to get girls. To be fair to Will, he's as charming as a nerd could be, well meaning, a great dad, and shyly clueless about the battle of the sexes.

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• An unwaveringly funny crowdpleaser

  tinybirds2015-06-17

  Charmingly every-day and cynically sweet, James Strouse's People, Places, Things (2015) is a playful illustration of the struggles of heartsick, 40-something nice-guys. We all know them: divorced and a bit adrift with a couple of kids, trying to understand the gap between where their life is and where they imagined it would be. This film is absolutely for the faint of heart; lightweight and quippy, it keeps a pretty steady comedic roll and is definitely not lacking in its share of flimsy sitcom-style tropes. Cutesy jokes about grown men being unable to dress well and efficiently care for themselves and their kids abound. Idiot students invariably disrupt class and make jokes about masturbation. Crazy wives are crazy. The impeccable comedic execution of main character Will, played by Jemaine Clement, as well as supporting cast members Stephanie Allynne, Regina Hall, and Jessica Williams, definitely elevate this film from just a pleasant and heartwarming flick to a cleverly executed, if light, comedic experience. What this film lacks in profundity, it makes up for in relatability and spirit raising adorableness that has the potential to appeal to a wide audience. Will is a graphic novelist and professor in New York, who separates from his partner Charlie (Allynne) within the first five minutes of the film after he stumbles upon her alone with another man, and in his t-shirt, upstairs at their twin daughters' birthday party. He then finds himself relegated to a lonely apartment in Astoria, suddenly thrown off course and missing Charlie and his daughters. Seeing his thinly veiled gloom in class, college student Kat (Williams) invites him to her home for dinner with the intention of fixing him up with her mother Diane, a quick witted Columbia University professor played by Hall. A guarded romance ensues while Will struggles over the increasing complexity of his dynamic with Charlie, as well as his new life, fatherhood, and just general inability to pull himself together. Close camera-work connects us intimately to each defeated response and hilariously mumbling reproach Will dishes out to those around him. Comedy strongman Clement flawlessly carries the timing and tone of this amusingly reflective film. The musical score by Mark Orton is gently bright and upbeat, appropriately unobtrusive for its lightweight context. Will's own comics charmingly serve as a secondary source for connectivity with the backstory and not-so-underlying narrative of detached loneliness for a character that had seemingly always desired to be a touch farther removed from those around him that he managed to be - until now. Will's comics are a good symbol for the film itself - quirky, cute, superficially grazing the human condition and leaving little work to the viewer in decoding Will's underlying emotions. We don't have to think too much - just as when reading a comic the thoughts and sentiment are right there in plain sight. There's not much to be done beyond minding the "gap" between your comic's panels, as Will covers in class, riding close to the line of obviating the weightiest symbolism this film has to offer, while its main man searches for what was missed in the in-between spaces he may not have been giving the necessary attention. Still, the film manages to toe that line effectively, maintaining its romantic comedy air while staying equally rooted in realistic emotions and resolutions. While Clement played a significant role in helping to elevate this film, for me, his presence also detracted oddly. As pleasant and consistent as this film was, I found myself continually expecting the disarming peculiarity and heart of the directorial influence of Clement's usual partner in film Taika Waititi (What We Do in The Shadows, and Eagle vs. Shark). It's quirky and very personal air seemed to nod to the same stylistic motivations, but failed to deliver that level of uniqueness and sentiment that really makes films like Waititi's sink into your pores and stay there. Yet, much of the charm of People, Places, Things may be found in its ordinariness. A pleasantly accessible film with ample charisma and comedic talent, People, Places, Things is nothing more (or less!) than an effortlessly funny, easy to watch and easy to like crowdpleaser.

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• A film about real life people

  Gordon-112015-08-22

  This film tells the story of a newly divorced graphic novelist, and his life that juggles between work, his two daughters and sorting out his emotions for his ex-wife. "People Places Things" is a natural story about real life people and real life events. Though people say they go to the cinemas to see what isn't ordinary, it's refreshing to see something real. The lead character, Will, is clearly surprised to see his wife in bed with another man. Interestingly, he doesn't show much emotions on the spot. Instead, he spends the next year working through his emotions, and be an even better father to his two young daughters. I enjoyed watching this film.

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• A romantic comedy for adults

  siderite2016-02-26

  Jemaine carried the film, that's the truth. Otherwise it would have been yet another New York dialogue based neurotic script. The story is heart warming and acted with a candor that is both funny and tragic. Real characters, real people, that is what the plot was trying to portray and it pretty much manages to do so. There are some bits that are a bit forced and kind of show that the writer is also the director, but overall a good movie. The thing is that without Jemaine Clement as the lead, I am not sure I would have rated this more than average, while the jokes are funny, but pretty spaced out. Not a lot of romance in it either - well, it is, but real stuff, not butterfly in the stomach and people meant for each other. It's just ... life.

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• Funny enough, good for Jemaine Clement fans

  edge5472016-12-05

  This movie attracted me due simply to the fact that it stars Jemaine Clement. I think the guy is hilarious, even when he's not supposed to be, due mostly to his awkward demeanor, funny accent, and spot-on delivery. I'm a big fan of Flight of the Conchords and I love his movie Eagle vs Shark, so I knew I had to watch this one. It's a bit of a romantic comedy, which I've never been a huge fan of, but I've seen a few that were really well done. This one is not particularly well done and feels sloppy and cheesy throughout. It won't make you cry or contemplate life or leave you thinking about it for long after the credits roll, but it's still entertaining enough to keep you watching, and Jemaine, as always, is hilarious and fun to watch.

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