Review of We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004) by Matthew F — 18 Feb 2005

[font=Courier New]Don't expect to be blown away after seeing this film. Nothing happens that would warrent that. And half of you will hate this film, will find it empty, while the other half will love it, will find it moving. I happen to land in the latter half. To be frank, this is a difficult film, a very difficult film. Even if you love it, you don't necessarily enjoy it. This is because of how accurately, how uncompromisingly it portrays life. Reality. There is nothing ideal about anything. There is no huge secret to be revealed. Everybody kind of already knows what is going on. There is nothing perfect. There is nothing happy. Simply, [i]We Don't Live Here Anymore[/i] is the epitome of the sad, isolating reality that is the world.

The film itself is about adultery. It is about whether two people can ever love each other. And if it is possible to reciprocate this love to one another. In the end, the film leaves the conclusion open. There is no final statement. Rather it ends much like it begins. Love, life, depair, loneliness, uncertainty - they all come together. You cannot get one without the rest. So, as scandalous as adultery is, this film does not condemn anyone. But it does not condone the acts either. Sex and love are dealt abstractly here. They are things, items that can be returned and bought. The film does not shy away from anything. Sex becomes redemtive. It is deperate. It is angry. It is cold. The four characters, stuck in the routine of life - the mundaneness of love, cannot seem to be happy. And therefore, this film is one of the saddest in recent years. Some may find if empty, because in the end it is supposed to do that. Perhaps this is the film's one statement: life is emtpy.

Truely, [i]We Don't Live Here Anymore[/i], has not plot. It is a character study. And, consequently, it has terrific performances. Mark Ruffalo, Peter Krause, Naomi Watts, and Laura Dern give powerful, deep performances. Each is able to straddle the precariousness and delicateness of loving and hating. But, despite Ruffalo's versatility, Krause's power, and Watts's subtlety, it is Dern who stands out. Only she is able to add true complexity to her character. She is the one that loves her husband and chides him because of it. While the other three occasionally feel cold, almost too sad in an already depressing movie, it is Dern who adds passion to the scenes. She is unafraid to be emotionally naked.

In the end, the film leaves without a conclusion. Nothing to explain things, nothing to provide closure. And in a sense, this is what is needed. The film is so emotionally raw, so provocative and direct, it requires the audience to think. While you watch it, [i]We Don't Live Here Anymore[/i] might not seem so special. But think about what the characters are experiencing, what they are feeling. Think about what life means. And then, hopefully, if you are willing to work at it, you will land in the latter half, among those that find magnificence in every frame, just as I did.

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