"C'mon, C'mon" -- Movie Review

 

During the final week of The 59^th New York Film Festival, I attended a screening of the drama “C'mon C'mon”, directed by Mike Mills, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Gaby Hoffmann

Synopsis

When a single man has to care for his nephew, will he suddenly be able to acquire the requisite parenting skills needed for a nine year old boy?

Story

Johnny (Phoenix) is finding himself in quite a bind.  As a radio journalist, he has been travelling the country conscientiously working on a project where he has been recording audio interviews with children about how they see their future.  In the midst of all this, he is contacted by his sister Viv (Gaby Hoffmann), who is in great distress:  her ex-husband is experiencing problems and she must help.  Can Johnny pitch in and watch her son Jesse (Woody Norman) while she’s out of town?  Although they are family, this is quite a bit to ask, considering the situation – Johnny hasn’t seen Woody in quite some time and they don’t really know each other terribly well.

Eventually, Johnny relents and flies out to Los Angeles to see Viv and Jesse.  Viv explains to Johnny that Jesse’s father, who has a history of mental problems, is going through something of a meltdown in his new home of Oakland and she must make sure that he is not doing harm to himself or others.  Reluctantly, Johnny agrees to stick around for a while so that he can supervise Jesse while Viv is away.  Things start out without too many problems, but eventually, Viv informs him that this looks like it’s going to take longer than she originally anticipated.  With Johnny needing to get back to work, he takes Jesse back to New York City with him, much to Viv’s consternation.   

While in New York City, things start out well between Johnny and Jesse – this boy has never been in The Big Apple before and views this whole thing as an exciting adventure.  Eventually, however, this precocious child begins to wear on his uncle’s nerves and things grow tense between the two – Jesse even occasionally seeming to run away from a panicked Johnny.  During this entire time, Johnny is simultaneously attempting to focus on his paused project while fulfilling his familial obligations to Viv and Jesse – but without any experience of actually taking care of a child, Johnny is getting on-the-job training.  Will he disappoint Viv and let down Jesse?  

Review

Are you hoping to see Joaquin Phoenix reprise his Joker performance?  If so, you’ll be sorely disappointed.  On the other hand, if you are in need of a good cry when watching a movie, then “C’mon, C’mon” may fill the bill for you.  It is certainly one of the most humanistic films you will see in a very long time.  On a micro level, the story is about how to learn to be a parent.  On a macro level, it is thematically about the importance of family in our lives – specifically, how it connects us to other people and, by extension, to the rest of humanity as a whole.  “C’mon, C’mon” will fill a void in your soul that you didn’t even realize was there.      

From the standpoint of story structure, however, there may be some areas to critique.  Early on, there is very little in the way of conflict that occurs.  It is not until well into the portion where Johnny and Jesse are in New York City that there is even a hint of tension between the two.  Why the movie is saved, however, is that once the conflict occurs, it is successfully able to sustain itself throughout the remainder of the film.  Moreover, the connection of family – however that may be defined – is what keeps the viewer engaged.  Regardless of whether the connection is sibling or parental, the theme persists. 

Following the screening, there was an interview that included director Mike Mills and star Joaquin Phoenix.  One of the more surprising statements was that Phoenix said Woody is English and that he does an American accent convincingly.  Additionally, Phoenix said, “(Woody) is my barometer for authenticity”.  What convinced them that Woody was right for the part was that during his audition, Woody ad-libbed in a way that showed intelligence about the character – “he gets it more than we do”, Phoenix added.  In his scenes with Woody, Phoenix said, “He was my guide – I would merely listen and react”.