Movie Review: Laurel Canyon (2002)

Genre: Drama  

Director: Lisa Cholodenko  
Starring: Frances McDormand, Christian Bale, Kate Beckinsale, Alessandro Nivola, Natascha McElhone  
Running Time: 101 minutes  

Synopsis: Engaged couple Sam and Alex (Christian Bale and Kate Beckinsale) move to Los Angeles, where he is about to start a hospital residency while she completes a medical dissertation. Sam's mother Jane (Frances McDormand) is a music producer, and the couple expect to initially stay at her empty house. But they are surprised to find Jane still at the house, working with a music band featuring her newest lover Ian (Alessandro Nivola). Sam and his mother do not get along, but Alex is gradually drawn into Jane's world of pot and music, and Ian quickly makes advances on Alex. Meanwhile, Sam finds his new co-worker Sara (Natascha McElhone) tempting.

What Works Well: Director and writer Lisa Cholodenko creates a disparate set of characters, and allows the worlds of art and science to rub against each other as a social experiment. Despite the languid pace and meandering plot points, watching Sam and Alex succumb to temptations carries a train-wreck-in-slow motion appeal. Frances McDormand's performance is a complex knot of nonchalant confidence and deep-seated regrets.

What Does Not Work As Well: Sam's apple-really-does-fall-close-to-the-tree journey is always forced, while the ease with which Alex ditches both her romantic anchor and her academic work is jarring. With everyone either already in the clutches of hormone-dominated life choices or well on that path, no astute characters are left to care for. The emotional outcome is unsurprisingly hollow, not helped by resolutions that happily merge inconsistencies with vagaries.

Key Quotes:

Jane: Are we ever gonna have a relationship?

Sam: Here we are - having it.

All Ace Black Movie Blog reviews are here.