Review of Barney's Version (2010) by Zachary N — 13 Aug 2011

You can generally bet on a movie being good if it stars Paul Giamatti. There aren't too many exceptions to that, and Barney's Version is no exception. Complex and enjoyable, though flawed, it almost reminds me of a less-surreal Synecdoche, New York.

Paul Giamatti is a strong lead, as always, and carries the film. He's not without help, however, as Dustin Hoffman largely disappears into the role of his character's father - their interactions are among the film's best moments. Rachelle Lefevre and Minnie Driver are both solid as Giamatti's character's earlier wives, though largely underdeveloped - you're never really given a sense of any of them being in love. It isn't until Rosamund Pike appears that there's any real romantic chemistry between Giamatti's character and one of his wives, and she gives a strong, understated performance throughout the film as one of its more sympathetic characters. The rest of the cast performs well, though none of their subplots are as important - this being one of the film's major flaws: there's too much plot, and it isn't all well developed or integrated, simply because there's too much to effectively pack into the two-hour-plus running time without the film becoming too long for most to sit through.

The original score is appropriately evocative and fits the film well, and the soundtrack worked well at every turn, with some appreciable use of Leonard Cohen songs at pivotal moments. The camera work and general cinematography is lovely as well.

As previously mentioned, one of the film's biggest flaws comes from its excess of plot. At heart, Barney's Version is the story of the titular protagonist's life - he's a deeply flawed person (As most of the characters are), though not without his charm and redeeming qualities here and there - and his relationships. But there's a lot of subplots that don't quite fit - such as the death of a drug addicted author friend played by Scott Speedman, and a corrupt cop's attempts to pin his disappearance on Barney. There's some definite clashes in tone, leaving you uncertain as to whether you're watching a dramedy, melodrama, or perhaps even a murder mystery. These issues drag the whole film down a bit, despite still being an interesting, enjoyable experience as a whole. I compare it to Synecdoche, New York in the opening, as that too followed the life of a highly flawed individual, whose life took some very strange, sad turns all throughout. They're similar, in the least, in starting at similar times in the protagonists' lives and containing relatively downbeat, large-scale life stories at their core.

Visibly flawed though it is, Barney's Version is an interesting film - more so than one might initially go in thinking a film about a fictitious Canadian television producer would be - with a good cast, and strong direction. It's definitely not an experience for everyone, so I'd probably recommend checking out a trailer first - if that manages to intrigue you, I'd recommend giving it a shot. Despite its flaws, you'll probably enjoy it and find yourself with a lot to think about afterward.