Somewhere (2010)

Somewhere

Directed by: Sofia Coppola

Starring: Stephen Dorff & Elle Fanning

Released: 2010

Country of Origin: USA

Runtime: 97 min.

I absolutely adore Sofia Coppola. She's a magical and wonderful human being. I get as giddy as a 14-year old Japanese school girl every time she releases a movie, and every time she does I'm consistently amazed. At the moment, I don't believe she can do anything wrong. Of coarse, with my luck that will probably mean the next feature she directs is going to suck. That tends to happen when I put this much faith in a director (I'm looking at you David Gordon Green, you bastard), but something tells me she's way to cool for that; I hope. For the time being my opinion of her is safe, because her newest feature (which of course never came to a theater near me) is just as awesome as the rest of her wonderful filmography.

Somewhere stars Stephan Dorff as Johnny, a movie star who seems to have little or no pleasure in his life. He's got plenty of stimuli, but nothing that gives him any feeling. Near the beginning of the film, two blonde girls perform a pole dance to "My Hero" by the Foo Fighters, which causes him to fall asleep. This is a man who has completely disconnected from life. The only real "light" in his life seems to be Cleo, his eleven year old daughter. While it's clear that Johnny has been a little absent in Cloe's life, he is by no means the typical absent father archetype. He may live a meaningless and irresponsible life on his own, but when his daughter is with him he tries his best to be a good father. Cloe is eventually left by her mother for an unspecified amount of time, and Johnny is forced to include her into his daily life.

This premise is bait for a completely generic and awful movie. We have all seen this done before. Reckless and emotionally ill-equipped father/mother is magically reunited with their long lost child, and are forced to re-examine their lives to learn a valuable lesson. And I'll admit, from the way the movie was presented in the trailer, I was a little worried. Still, there was a little voice in the back of my head that whispered: "No, Jordan, Sofia is one of the few non-related females that haven't ever let you down or hurt you. Trust her." For once, my brain was totally right, and Coppola turned an extremely lame plot into something very great. The biggest thing I appreciated about this was the treatment of Johnny. It'd be very easy to present him in a light that shines too much on his short comings as a father. He's not a great father, but he's not horrible. It's clear he loves his daughter, and you never feel he regrets or feels uncomfortable being around her. She also seems happy to spend time with him. Also, the "drama" is very subdued. I find it a little insulting and ineffective when movies try to force an emotional reaction from the audience. In Somewhere things just happen. It's more of a slice-of-life film then a plot driven one. This is their life; take it or leave it. Because of this restraint, when the emotional parts arrive, they are much more effective and heart-breaking. I've also got to mention how great Stephan Dorff and Elle Fanning are. Stephan Dorff has never really impressed me, and in fact the only role I can recall off the top of my head is from Blade. That's not a good sign. In this movie, however, he fits the role perfectly. Apparently those Fanning sister come from a very good well-spring of talent. I've always thought Dakota Fanning has it in her to be something great (she was the only redeeming part of that movie Push, which I'm sure none of you even remember), but Elle is definitely going to give her a run for her money. Also watch out for the surprisingly awesome appearance by Chris Pontius (ya know, from Jackass), and yes I did say awesome.

FINAL VERDICT: Go watch now! I'll admit the movie is slow, but it is never boring. In fact, it's extremely captivating. Yes, I am in love with Sofia Coppola, but I feel I'm still objective enough that if she ever made a stinker of a movie; I'd admit it. Luckily, I don't have to (yet). Another thing: pay close attention to the scene in which Johnny has a cast made of his face. I feel it perfectly captures several aspects of his life, and is oddly mesmerizing and suffocating.