Links: IMDB / Rotten Tomatoes: Rating 53%
Director: Petter Næss
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Radha Mitchell, Gary Cole, Sheila Kelley, Erica Leerhsen, John Carroll Lynch, Nate Mooney, Rusty Schwimmer, Robert Wisdom, Allen Evangelista, Kelly B. Eviston, Jhon Goodwin, Christa Campbell
Until recently, we only had a few films about individuals who were different. There were those which were "clearly stated", like Rain Man and some which were not so obvious like Benny & Joon and Harold and Maude.
Somewhere in the new millennium, things changed and "weird" characters became interesting. Personally, I blame the TV show "Monk" for starting the trend.
Since then there have been quite a few films and television series which focus on unique individuals including; Adam, Mary and Max, Napoleon Dynamite, House and The Big Bang Theory.
Had it been released during the "dry" period, Mozart and the Whale would have been a very impressive achievement but coming during a deluge of similar films, it's subject to comparison.
My first impression of this film is that the artist has used too broad a brush. It's as if the creative team found a book on autism and Aspergers syndrome and interpreted it literally.
Nearly all of the spectrum-dwelling characters in this film have all of the symptoms - and their characters are completely ruled by them.
Avoiding eye contact is translated as "acting like a vampire around a crucifix", unusual gait is translated as "running with.a major limp" and obsessive special interests is translated as "having no way to talk about anything else". Sure, we see similar kinds of behaviour in people with aspergers syndrome but usually, not all at once, not in a group and not to this extent.
There's no room for subtlety in this film.
I watched the film with my wife and just as I was finding the beginning unbearable (the cross-talking reaches overload point at times), she asked me to stop the film.
She told me that the film was making her very depressed and that she was worrying and thinking "what if our kids end up like that". I think that's where the real danger comes from in this film. It presents a very negative view of aspergers syndrome and in that sense, I feel that it does more harm than good.
Fortunately, after about the twenty minute mark, the film starts to settle. It raises some great points about acceptance and "fitting in" but doesn't adequately pursue them. When it ends all too abruptly, the audience is left with very little to go on.
It's not that I didn't like the film. I did. It's simply that it doesn't make the sort of impact that its cousins made. It's hard to tell whether its positive message about acceptance is worth the negative portrayal of life on the spectrum.
Watch with caution and don't automatically assume that it paints a picture of your child's life as an adult.
Honesty Clause: I wasn't provided with this film but went out an bought it on DVD. Then re-encoded the thing because the DVD didn't have a subtitle track, so I had to download one and add it in myself. There's really no excuse for that sort of oversight.
Comments
Since I don't want to wake the kids and since I often find that the background drowns out the speech anyway, subtitles are my preferred option.
I can watch without but they no longer bother me like they used to.
It's easier/faster for many of us to process information in written form.
Can you tell me about some great movies released this year? Many thanks in advance for your help! :)
It's about a young man, who's struggling through life after his father's death and who has been on the verge of getting fired from his job because of his Aspergers.
He meets Beth (Rose Byrne) and knows he's fallen in love and she has too, but they are complete opposites.
Her parents don't like him and make fun of him, but she stills loves him.
Great movie! Won a lot of awards too!
Thank you for a great, imformative blog Gavin.
I also want to thank you and Jumbled Bookcase for your comments on subtitles! This explains a lot for me!!
About "Mozart and the Whale": I saw that movie a few days after Alex was diagnosed (5 years old), when I was scrambling to find ANYTHING on Asperger's syndrome, and it really disturbed me. It made everything else I discovered through research and Alex's developmental psychologist much easier to accept, actually! Thank you all for the suggestions of other movies. I've seen the trailer for "Mary and Max" and think Alex would enjoy it too. He loves stories that have characters "like" him.
http://fluffypinkcloud.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/weird-love-aspergers-on-film/
I have a different perspective than you, although I admit that this movie had to grow on me. I felt the beginning was a little intense and jarring.
it's like you pointed out, the characters were more like walking diagnostic descriptions than real people...all of the traits were dutifully checked off, it was irritating to see AS people presented in such a 2 dimensional, reductive manner.
also, the main female character in the movie...she was far too screechy and melodramatic...it honestly seemed like borderline personality disorder was more her issue, she was an awful example of AS. it was a really off-key characterization.
anyway, i was not thrilled to see this movie out there, creating a generally unpleasant view of AS.
AS is something that's difficult enough to come to terms with (I was only diagnosed three years ago, in a happenstance manner) and am just now accepting this as who I am--I don't need to clutter my mind up with films and negative images such as that.
Maybe the film took a different turn, but I certainly was not sticking around for it--I couldn't.
Read http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4862652.stm , you'll like it! :)
Now having seen the film, I still think it is up to us Aspies to let our voices heard until the media can no longer ignore us. But, to be honest, the longer the film lasted the more I liked it, and the end brought me to tears.
I don't grasp some comments here. Firstly, the actors did do a great job in how they performed those tiny details, those "odd" ways us Aspies can react to signals or words around us.
Secondly, this may look like a cheesy romantic movie with two "neurodifferent" folks... But know that the film is based on a true story, and that they actually give a good impression of the two key characters.
Donald is shy, he is a control freak, he is however a mathematical genius who genuinely cares about other people.
Isabelle is the opposite: she just ignores all norms and rules and can have wild mood swings ranging from panic attacks to euphoria, but always spontaneous. They portrayed two people with the same diagnosis but with totally different characters, a pleasant surprise compared to the stereotypical "rain man" character. Both Donald and Isabelle are realistic representations of AS: the mathematical routine loving person, and the spontaneous person who gets herself in problems but always is well intending.
Thirdly, and maybe most important: I don't get the reaction of the people here with an Aspie child who felt the film was depressing. I would say it was hopeful. In the end you can see Donald blossom more and more because of Isabelle taking him into her own life at full speed, while she in the end more and more shows the sensitive side when she can no longer ignore her feelings for Donald. The fact they overcame a lot of obstacles but ended up as a happily married couple, how can this be depressing rather than hopeful?
Of course this was a sometimes cheesy Hollywood production with a predictable happy ending. But this one at least has proven to have done excellent casting; the actors were truly excellent. The story was based upon a real story, but well adapted into the present time. The eccentric sides of the characters were sometimes focussed on, but truly, I'd say a girl like Isabelle is charming just because of her "dance like nobody's watching" attitude. The fact Donald excels in his new job and that their love has overcome their problems, is a very positive undertone without denying the problems we often go through.
May I ask why some worry about their diagnosed child after seeing this film? Does someone need to be "normal" that badly? Do you think people in the autism spectrum have nothing but bleak depressive futures ahead?
Let me tell you: I have lived on my own for 10 years now and have lived in 7 different countries. I have always managed to do my job well, and while my friends are also on the eccentric side I am not an isolated person. I write poetry and love performing, in front of other people. And I'm still full of plans.
Above all, let me tell you this: I have AS. And I am proud of it. The whole world may know it, it's no secret. I'm autistic and I am proud. If there was a cure, I wouldn't want it. Because despite the obstacles and the intensities of Aspie life, I accepted myself and wouldn't want it any other way. As long as they believe in themselves and don't believe the idea that autism hinders you in your entire life, a person with AS can live a very exciting and vibrant life and become a very intellectual, loving person. We are neurodifferent yes, but what is "normal" anyway? Most fellow Aspies I met were people with problems but once you get to know them, you can't wish for more intellectual and friendly people to hang out with.