Rated R for language and some sexual content
Cast: Paul Giamatti, Dustin Hoffman, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lafevre, Scott Speedman
Director: Richard J. Lewis
Barney Panofsky is a character we admire and pity in equal measure. The biggest achievement in "Barney's Version" is that we never really judge him, even when afforded every opportunity to do so. That's a tribute to Paul Giamatti, whose portrayal of Panofsky runs the gamut from charismatic to vulnerable so effectively and completely that our judgments--good or bad--are reserved for those personalities that surround him.
Based upon the novel by the late Mordecai Richler, the movie opens with an aging Barney Panofsky--bitter, drunk, and phone in hand--making a call to his ex-wife's new husband in the middle of the night, offering up a slew of acerbic zingers. From there, the film flashes back to Rome in the 70s. The story spans some thirty years. We bear witness to Barney's failed marriages...
The first was to a knocked up, flower-child free-spirit (Rachel Lefevere) whose promiscuity seemed lightweight compared to her flittering personality. (After Barney realizes the child isn't his, he opts not to confront her about it, choosing instead to offer consolation. Her response? "Oh, Barney. You really do wear your heart on your sleeve. Now put it away, it's disgusting to look at.")
The second was to the attitude-cloaked daughter (Minnie Driver) of a rich tycoon. Barney was immediately attracted to her, but her father's unbridled disgust for both Barney and his father, Izzy (Dustin Hoffman), regardless of the public setting, became too much for Barney to bear.
His new family's disdain is such a cross to bear that the moment he lays eyes on Miriam Grant (Rosemund Pike) at the wedding reception, Barney wastes no time in approaching her and striking up a conversation. He is so smitten, so enthralled, that he follows her to the train station and professes his love for her. Understandably, she rebuffs his advances. We know, however, Barney will not be deterred. Love at first sight? ("I can't believe it happened!" he exclaims. "It actually happens!")
Barney divorces wife #2, thanks in large part to an affair between her and his best friend, Boogie (Scott Speedman), then proceeds to woo Miriam in every way imaginable. She finally agrees to dinner. After a rough start (battling a bout of anxiety, Barney drinks himself into a stupor before the dinner, gets sick) they get to talking. "I'm just gonna keep on talking. And talking," Barney says. "Because I'm so afraid of that little pause, where you say that you'd best be getting going. I'm so afraid of that." But the pause comes and goes. She's not leaving. She's won over.
Miriam is far more understanding and tolerant than his first wives, but perceptive and cautious, too. "With everything you've done to pursue me, how do I know I can trust you?" she asks earnestly. He smiles, removes a cigar-clipper from his pocket. "I'll just cut it off," he jokes. The tragedy here is that he doesn't know the answer, but she (and we) do.
Barney Panofsky seems, at first, like the prototypical self-destructive personality, yet Giamatti doesn't really play him as one, opting instead to imbue him with a passion for the chase, an adoration for romantic idealism, and an unfortunate inability to grow as a person. He can certainly love. We see this not only in the early stages of his relationship with Miriam, but especially in scenes with his father. There is no undercurrent of tension. Barney and Izzy share an unfettered love and appreciation for each others' quirks and foibles.
I've seen Rosamund Pike in a few movies, and she hasn't really stood out to me. Too often she comes off as a little flat in her performances. Not mannered per se. (There's a fluidity to her line delivery that's comfortable.) But she reminds me of a stage actor who has done virtually nothing other than period pieces, and now has trouble connecting emotionally to her surroundings. I did find her more effective here than in the past, though I wonder if it's because she's playing off the consistently intriguing Giamatti. I came to accept her portrayal as Miriam... I liked her understated delivery, particularly in later scenes as she patiently explains her need for growth to a husband who seems stunted in his.
The movie is like a demonstration of two cinematic tones. The first half is sharp, witty, charming, and funny. The second half becomes much more nuanced in its pacing, more melancholic, and distinctly sentimental. Yet as Barney slips away into the cloud of Alzheimer's, we're privy to a truth Barney Panofsky is never fully able to comprehend...
That while all he wanted was to find someone who didn't see him as the awkward, insecure, flawed outcast he perceived himself to be... Barney ended up with something better. Someone who saw those flaws crystal-clear. Weighed the risk. Measured it. And ultimately embraced it.
* * * out of * * * * stars
Based upon the novel by the late Mordecai Richler, the movie opens with an aging Barney Panofsky--bitter, drunk, and phone in hand--making a call to his ex-wife's new husband in the middle of the night, offering up a slew of acerbic zingers. From there, the film flashes back to Rome in the 70s. The story spans some thirty years. We bear witness to Barney's failed marriages...
The first was to a knocked up, flower-child free-spirit (Rachel Lefevere) whose promiscuity seemed lightweight compared to her flittering personality. (After Barney realizes the child isn't his, he opts not to confront her about it, choosing instead to offer consolation. Her response? "Oh, Barney. You really do wear your heart on your sleeve. Now put it away, it's disgusting to look at.")
The second was to the attitude-cloaked daughter (Minnie Driver) of a rich tycoon. Barney was immediately attracted to her, but her father's unbridled disgust for both Barney and his father, Izzy (Dustin Hoffman), regardless of the public setting, became too much for Barney to bear.
His new family's disdain is such a cross to bear that the moment he lays eyes on Miriam Grant (Rosemund Pike) at the wedding reception, Barney wastes no time in approaching her and striking up a conversation. He is so smitten, so enthralled, that he follows her to the train station and professes his love for her. Understandably, she rebuffs his advances. We know, however, Barney will not be deterred. Love at first sight? ("I can't believe it happened!" he exclaims. "It actually happens!")
Barney divorces wife #2, thanks in large part to an affair between her and his best friend, Boogie (Scott Speedman), then proceeds to woo Miriam in every way imaginable. She finally agrees to dinner. After a rough start (battling a bout of anxiety, Barney drinks himself into a stupor before the dinner, gets sick) they get to talking. "I'm just gonna keep on talking. And talking," Barney says. "Because I'm so afraid of that little pause, where you say that you'd best be getting going. I'm so afraid of that." But the pause comes and goes. She's not leaving. She's won over.
Miriam is far more understanding and tolerant than his first wives, but perceptive and cautious, too. "With everything you've done to pursue me, how do I know I can trust you?" she asks earnestly. He smiles, removes a cigar-clipper from his pocket. "I'll just cut it off," he jokes. The tragedy here is that he doesn't know the answer, but she (and we) do.
Barney Panofsky seems, at first, like the prototypical self-destructive personality, yet Giamatti doesn't really play him as one, opting instead to imbue him with a passion for the chase, an adoration for romantic idealism, and an unfortunate inability to grow as a person. He can certainly love. We see this not only in the early stages of his relationship with Miriam, but especially in scenes with his father. There is no undercurrent of tension. Barney and Izzy share an unfettered love and appreciation for each others' quirks and foibles.
I've seen Rosamund Pike in a few movies, and she hasn't really stood out to me. Too often she comes off as a little flat in her performances. Not mannered per se. (There's a fluidity to her line delivery that's comfortable.) But she reminds me of a stage actor who has done virtually nothing other than period pieces, and now has trouble connecting emotionally to her surroundings. I did find her more effective here than in the past, though I wonder if it's because she's playing off the consistently intriguing Giamatti. I came to accept her portrayal as Miriam... I liked her understated delivery, particularly in later scenes as she patiently explains her need for growth to a husband who seems stunted in his.
The movie is like a demonstration of two cinematic tones. The first half is sharp, witty, charming, and funny. The second half becomes much more nuanced in its pacing, more melancholic, and distinctly sentimental. Yet as Barney slips away into the cloud of Alzheimer's, we're privy to a truth Barney Panofsky is never fully able to comprehend...
That while all he wanted was to find someone who didn't see him as the awkward, insecure, flawed outcast he perceived himself to be... Barney ended up with something better. Someone who saw those flaws crystal-clear. Weighed the risk. Measured it. And ultimately embraced it.
* * * out of * * * * stars
