Review of 21 Grams (2003) by Olaolu A — 19 Mar 2012

I can't believe it took me this long to finally check this one out but I'm glad I finally did because it's easily one of the best films I have experienced in a while. It demands not only an emotional investment but an intellectual one as well. The manner in which the filmmakers have assembled the storyline was a sore point for many when this was released back in 2003 and admittedly, it can be frustrating to those who aren't willing to pay rapt attention. In terms of films that employ non-linear timelines to tell their stories - including the likes of Memento, Pulp Fiction and the slightly more obscure Atom Eyogan efforts, Exotica and The Sweet Hereafter (of all the four films I just mentioned, this one probably has the most in common with the last two) - this maybe the most extreme example I have encountered. Basically, the film moves fluidly amongst the three principal characters and jumps back and forth in time like a ping-pong ball; it's as if the filmmakers shot everything in sequence and then decided to break it all down into short scenes no longer than 5 minutes each before reassembling the movie in a completely random fashion. To put it another way, it feels as though one is forced to assemble a mental jigsaw puzzle but for those willing to put forth the effort and work through the details, a clear pattern begins to develop from the chaos as everything starts to converge towards several key events. Sitting in the director's chair is Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu for whom this was the second film in his stylistic and thematic trilogy involving individuals and the tragedies that unite them (his main collaborator for all three films was writer Guillermo Arriaga). The director made his debut in his home country with 2000's ultra-gritty Amorres Perros and concluded the trilogy in 2006 with the international, star-studded Babel. 21 Grams, the director's first American-financed effort, is arguably the best of the bunch (although the other two films are strong, powerful pieces of cinema).

The film's title derives from the idea that everyone loses 21 grams at the exact moment that they die and if there's one thing that unites all of the main characters in this film, it's the presence of the grim reaper. I don't wanna get into too many details for those who haven't seen the film yet but suffice it to say, this is one group of people who are intimately familiar with hardship and tragedy long before the pivotal event in the film that binds them inextricably. As one can expect from a film with such heavy subject matter, the tone is dark and somber but not to such an extent that there isn't any room for redemption or hope. And the filmmakers don't take the easy way out by turning this into some overly sentimental melodrama that is heavy on manipulation. There is no denying that this film culls a strong emotional response but it doesn't earn that with cheap theatrics. Along the way, moments of humor are occasionally unearthed, such as when one character chooses to donate his sperm and the doctor puts him in a room complete with various "inspirational" materials. Such asides are necessary to occasionally loosen the grip of doom that seems to have such a strong hold on the main characters in the story but, despite the multiple calamities that befall everyone, the filmmakers still manage to bring closure to the story lines without undoing everything that came before.

Before I conclude, I feel that a few words about the acting, which never fails to be of the highest caliber possible, are in order. Both Benicio Del Toro and Naomi Watts received Oscar nominations for their raw, searing performances and rightfully so. Del Toro allows us to forgive his participation in the generic action flick The Hunted from earlier in 2003 and reminds us of the actor who mesmerized us in films like Traffic (for which he'd previously won the Oscar) and Snatch. His character, Jack Jordan, is an ex-con who has recently found faith in Christ and struggles daily to live his life according to Biblical principles but finds his faith tested once fate deals him a particularly tough hand. Del Toro allows us to accept this man as a sincere individual who desires to do the right thing but often struggles with the demons of his past (on a side note, it's refreshing to encounter a Hollywood-produced effort that doesn't paint Evangelical Christians as caricatures but rather as three-dimensional individuals who truly wrestle with their faith and don't pretend to have all the answers). Like Del Toro, Watts also has to play a character who undergoes several personality transformations throughout the film - from strung-out drug addict to loving wife and mother of two and then back again once circumstances throw her a curve - and the actress is never less than convincing from the get go. It takes guts for any actress - especially one as attractive as Watts - to take the kinds of risk that she displays here and oftentimes allow herself to look rather ugly. Ultimately, this is just one of many tools that she employs to completely bury herself in the role.

The third lead in the drama, Sean Penn, was enjoying quite the banner year when this came out; he would of course go on to win the Oscar for his performance in the searing Mystic River but his acting here hits the mark equally as well. His character in each film is a very different individual but many of the conflicts and conundrums that they face are strikingly similar. What matters is that in both films, Penn totally brings his A-game and disappears under the skin of the characters he's portraying - his work in both Mystic River and 21 Grams deserves mention alongside Dead Man Walking at the top of his resume as an actor. The leads all get strong support from the rest of the cast including the likes of Charlotte Gainsbourg, Melissa Leo (who finally won her Oscar in more recent years), Clea DuVall and Eddie Marsan amongst others. I can't say enough good things about this film. Anything that would require and reward such a complete investment from its audience instead of just insulting them with cheap escapism deserves nothing less than the highest possible recommendation.