Review of Being There (1979) by Harsh C — 15 Oct 2016

The swansong of comedy giant Peter Sellers, Being There would be far more compelling and far less boring if it had about 20 minutes cut out of it, preferably in the middle, where a very leisurely pace almost brings the movie to a halt.

It becomes quite repetitive as it nears it's end, saying the same things over and over again, but it's definitely worth watching for the first act. Sellers is restrained and believable, gliding gracefully from scene to scene with his eternal expression of mild fascination.

The movie explores what it's like to be an outsider, to be lost in a world one should be familiar in, and the interactions he has with the other characters change him enough that he appears to be coming out of his shell, but not so much that he becomes a different person altogether.

I wouldn't watch it again in a hurry, as I believe the pacing would become more and more infuriating each time you watched it, but's its more than worth it for the central performance, it's quirkiness and genuine niceties.