Lonesome Jim DVD
Lonesome Jim DVD Review
From Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver to Max Fischer in Rushmore,
the best characters are typically the most contradictory, often trying to
do good only to fail or cause harm. On the opposite spectrum, the title
character in Lonesome Jim appears to be lonesome and sedentary
because of his choosing, or more appropriately, his lack of choosing anything.
Jim comes from that history of middle class individuals who feel the world
owes them greatness just for merely existing, and the story focusing on
his return home to a quirky family from a failed attempt at life has seemed
to become a new genre.
One of the basic precautions when writing fiction is to be careful to write
about yourself because you’ll never let yourself do anything wrong.
In this case, James Strouse’s screenplay of what is reported as semi-autobiographical
only makes Jim’s suffering and sadness look self-indulgent. Thankfully,
the humor saves the film even when the mood and tone don’t mesh and
it’s mysterious if what is funny should be amusing or poignant or
neither or both. From Jim answering his mother about why he and his brother
turned-out so unhappy by saying that not all people should be parents to
Jim getting a ride from his hallucinatory-drug-binging uncle on a scooter
that clearly only seats one, the movie keeps itself from being depressing
for depression’s sake. In fact, the film moves smoothest when Jim’s
attempt at transformation takes a backseat to a plot involving Jim’s
uncle (who hilariously goes by the presumably self-prescribed nickname ‘Evil’)
getting Jim’s ultra-naive mother in trouble with the DEA.
As an intimate story, the film plays well on DVD.
The complimentary dry, barren landscape of the Midwest translates fine from
being shot digitally to the small screen, and having played sparingly in
theaters, this movie should hopefully find a wider audience on home video.
The disc contains a short and somewhat informative featurette and also a
director’s commentary by Buscemi, who has proven that along with being
one of the greatest actors alive, probably has a great movie in him as a
director given the right story and circumstances. While this film might
not merit repeat viewings, it’s definitely worth renting, if for no
other reason than to see the comically anti-climatic high-speed chase involving
Evil, his 35 mph scooter, and the authorities at the film’s conclusion.
Lonesome Jim is out on DVD now.
For the trailer and more movie info, go to the Lonesome
Jim Movie Page.
Stay tuned for updates.
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