Directed by:
Adam Goldberg
Starring:
Giovanni Ribisi ………. Gray Evans
Franka Potente ………. Mia
Joshua Jackson ………. John
Marisa Coughlan ………. Jane
Christina Ricci ………. Shana
Jared Harris ………. Yehud
Elvis Costello ………. Himself
Rick Hoffman ………. Louis
Eric Siegel ………. Phil
Cyan Pictures, Departure Entertainment, Departure Studios, Muse Productions, Rice/Walters Productions and ThinkFILM present I Love Your Work. Written by Adrian Butchart & Adam Goldberg. Runtime: 111 minutes. Rated R (for language, sexuality, some drug content and violent images). Available on DVD: March 28, 2006.
I don’t know why when I popped this disc in to my DVD player that I expected something very similar to perhaps Paparazzi or one of the many other films centering around a paranoid celebrity, one about a rising star who begins to try coaping with fame and the pratfalls that come with it. These type of movies tend to follow the same structure and when I first saw the trailer a few weeks back on a DVD it peaked my interest as a title that could be worth the time to check out. I guess it’s just that once you see one stalker movie you’ve seen them all, know what I mean? Boy was I wrong.
Centering around thespian Gray Evans, I Love Your Work takes a twisted and original look at the mental stability of a man who is in too deep and is losing his footing more and more each day. Married to a fellow starlet and his boy hood crush going through film school Mia he’s consistently reminded through tabloids how he’s not right for her or how the couple’s love life is on the rocks. In many ways it’s very similar to the whole Jessica Simpson and Nick Lashey or Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston events last year with countless paper rags stating the two couples were about to call it quits at any moment. Now Gray is trying as hard as he can to prove them all wrong and show that he deserves Mia and loves her more than anyone could imagine, or perhaps he’s only doing so to prove everyone wrong and make a point rather than realize the truth.
When going to a premiere with the red carpet rolled out and bulbs flashing he sees a mysterious man giving him an ominous look, he brushes it off until he begins to see the man more and more on his regular daily routine. He also has an encounter with John, a video store clerk working his way through film school living with his girlfriend Jane. Gray begins to question the coincidences of running in to both men so frequently going so far as to hire a private investigator to help out on the matters he’s becoming so paranoid.
With his love life in shambles, unable to let go of his past decisions in life and beginning a questionable friendship with one of the men he at first saw as a stalker Gray is only slipping further and further from where he once stood – the top of the world.
Rabisi does a wonderful job of playing the fragile, very secluded and isolated Gray Evans, who walks down the street and takes the subway dressed all in black wearing thick sunglasses with his head tilted down to go unrecognized. All others are for the most part nonexistent seeing as the film revolves around Gray and his inner thoughts and struggles. There are plenty of well known actors in the cast, including such high profile players as Vince Vaughn, Jason Lee, Elvis Costello, Christina Ricci, and Franka Potente. But above all the rest Joshua Jackson is probably the largest contributor from the supporting cast, with a real screen presence from the former Dawson’s Creek actor.
Writer/director (also editor, composer, and producer) Adam Goldberg who’s not exactly new to the whole Hollywood thing is a relatively newcomer to directing. It’s not very shocking to see an actor try and slip his way in to other aspect of the business by writing something revolving around something very akin to their own life experiences in the business, and while slightly more original than the rest I Love Your Work still seems to fail at the more important aspects of the story. Like making characters likeable, or atleast understandable to the point where viewers feel honest remorse which is something very important to establish for generally unlikable characters such as the ones shown here. His work behind the camera is some type of hybrid between new age and the old school style of film making, and on that front he excels tremendously as an up and coming director.
In the end the film does a lot of work to keep you guessing but just because it has some originality doesn’t exactly mean it’s worth your time to sit through. Goldberg should really reconsider how many tasks he chooses to spear head on his films because it’s pretty clear he’s stretching himself thin here. If he were to stick with strictly directing he could have a very promising future after his acting career is over.
Score: 6/10
Video:
(Presented in 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen)
The video presentation isn’t without it’s flaws, there is little noticeable grain and also some small specs on the print, but never do they detract from the story at hand. Still for a low budget independent feature it looks as best as one could hope for. Black levels stay consistent, there is also quite a bit of edge enhancement on the DVD that become an issue. But above all else you’ll clearly be able to see Goldberg’s stylistic camera work which is certainly something to be seen thanks in large part to the work of cinematographer Mark Putnam.
Score: 7/10
Audio:
(English 5.1 Dolby Surround and 2.0 Stereo)
While the video is tolerable the audio tracks included are average, far too many times did I find myself highering and lowering the volume while the movie was on. There is good use of the rear speakers and subwoofer allowing the musical score (which was also composed by Goldberg) to flow seamlessly from front to back. The stereo track does as good a job it can do with its limitations, and with a character study like this film is the audio is of very little importance anyway.
Score: 6/10
Extras:
The only real bonus on the disc is a Feature Length Commentary with director Adam Goldberg and Giovanni Ribisi who is the star of the film. Both men have a real grumble to their voice so it might be a smart choice to tone down your bass. The track is very scene specific where they’ll talk about a shooting location of a musical score or share on set anecdotes and then have a dead spot. Goldberg spends a lot of time pointing out who did what in a movie or who’s on screen and nine time out of ten they’re a close friend or an old buddy. Not as much of a how-to guide I expected it to be which is a slight let down.
The only other features you’ll find on the DVD are a Music Gallery which is a selection of four scores done for the movie and it lists which scenes they were used in, a Trailer Gallery which includes around six trailers including The Aristocrats and Second Best, and finally there’s the Theatrical Trailer for I Love Your Work.
Score: 4/10
