film Get Low (Sony Classics; 103 minutes;
PG-13; widescreen; 2010). Robert Duvall has played big-city roles throughout his movie output—think of his consigliore in the first two Godfather epics, or the corporate hatchet man in Network—and with age, it seems, the actor has been inhabiting grizzly cracker types in the not-so-lofty likes of Four Christmases and Secondhand Lions. But Duvall’s heart has always sided with characters that come across as key examples of rural Americana, such as his country singer in Tender Mercies and his holy roller from The Apostle. As Felix Bush, the cranky codger at the emotional center of the new indie art-house darling Get Low, Duvall’s new character at times feels like a kissin’ cousin to his debut film part, Boo Radley, in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962); both roles typify the outsider looking in, although he’s also the one harboring some dark secret that functions as a plot catalyst. Set in some unspecified Midwest region
during the 1930s, the opening scene of direc- tor Aaron Schneider’s movie depicts a house engulfed in flames and a mysterious person fleeing into the darkness. This puzzle is never solved until the final reel, although teasing flashbacks are randomly dropped in through- out. Sure, this is Foreshadowing 101 in the filmmakers’ handbook, but Schneider is more interested in conjuring backwoods atmosphere and defining character arcs. Felix has lived in self-imposed exile for 40 years, as subsequent generations of
kids have perpetuated the legends of all the dastardly sins Felix has committed. The old coot gets the brainstorm to throw a lav- ish funeral party for himself—before he’s dead, of course—with the caveat that every mourner who shows up must tell one of those rumors. As smarmy undertaker Frank Quinn (Bill Murray) and his young associate Buddy (Lucas Black) handle the preparations, Felix’s plans get thrown for a loop when a lady from his past, the attractive and recently widowed Mattie Darrow (Sissy Spacek), re-enters the picture. By movie’s end, Felix realizes that the townspeople’s tall tales about him will be insignificant, because he can never truly die and seek forgiveness until he must tell his own story. Employing the real-life actions of Felix
“Bush” Breazeale, who gained national pub- licity for his fake funeral in 1938 Tennessee, screenwriters Chris Provenzano and C. Gaby Mitchell have fashioned a funky folk tale of love and death. Director Schneider makes the most of his Georgia locations, with more of an emphasis on Felix’s reclusive lifestyle in which the world’s Depression-era woes are barely addressed, although the lack of current corpses does make Frank Quinn concerned that his funeral home might be going broke. The relationship between Felix and Mattie
is likewise delicately handled by the old- pro performers; when Duvall’s Felix greets Spacek’s Mattie with, “You look like you always did,” it’s pretty easy to agree because
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Spacek is so ageless. Schneider carefully paves the way for Felix to earn his redemp- tion, and Duvall—who also served as an executive producer, again putting his money into projects he believes in—delivers the actorly goods big time with a climactic eulo- gy that demonstrates why he’s already been short-listed for year-end awards consideration. It doesn’t hurt that the Provenzano-Mitch-
ell script is chockablock with clever dialogue. Bill Cobbs pops up halfway through the proceedings as Charlie Jackson, a philatelic preacher who urges Felix to come clean; the actor is blessed with some great one-liners (“Free will is not what it’s cracked up to be.”) and also performs a memorable double take at the end when he spies a name on one grave- stone. As Buddy, actor Lucas Black (Sling Blade) manages to circumvent the cliches that come with being a Jiminy Cricket-styled conscience-raiser, although a glaring plot hole involving his character (Who conked Buddy in the head during a robbery attempt?) is never resolved. And Bill Murray is a quiet riot as Frank
Quinn, merging a sleazy desperation with some surprising moments of depth regard- ing his undertaker’s past to create a uniquely humane character. His droll comic repartee is beyond flawless: When Buddy wonders if they should orchestrate Felix’s strange request, Frank snarls, “I sold 26 of the ugli- est cars in the middle of December with the wind blowing so far up my ass I was farting
Wake fake: Bill Murray in Get Low.
snowflakes in July, so don’t tell me we can’t do this!” If Duvall’s already on acting short lists for Get Low, then there should be awards handed out for consummate scene-stealers like Bill Murray, too.
—BILL DELAPP
WWW.SYRACUSENEWTIMES.COM
Syracuse New Times September 22 - 29, 2010
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