Review of Everything Must Go (1996) by Caress T — 09 Nov 2013

I might have liked this movie better if it hadn't been based on Raymond Carver's work, or if I hadn't known that it was. Knowing as I watched, though, made the movie painful for me, because it seemed pretty clear that, of those most involved in the production, none really understood Carver very well, and all seemed to think, because he's one of the writers with a stately black Library of America collection at Barnes and Noble, that he must be an artist with an existential, philosophical vision that is harkened to, if not actually achieved here -- and which Carver just didn't have, or, at least, not in the way they tried to do it. This feels like the work of elementary school kids who are doing an impression of Dad, not quite knowing what Dad's life is really like, but understanding that Dad will forgive them -- only they think that Dad is a rugged American Camus instead of a recovered (or recovering) alcoholic with a keen talent for scene and, ultimately, and surprisingly, a sweet, raw faith in goodness.

Raymond Carver was poignant, but he lived way closer to the ground than they're aiming here (and still sort of missing, I'd say). If you're going to do Raymond Carver, do Raymond Carver. That's my view. If you're going to do this, find your own gol-danged story. Either that, or borrow a respected master's work for your own purpose with a little more tact, charm and/or awareness.