Movie Notes: Winter Passing
= 3 stars
Starring Zooey Deschanel, Ed Harris, Will Ferrel
Directed by Adam Rapp
Synopsis
Depressed actress Reese Holden (Zooey Deschanel) visits her reclusive novelist father (Ed Harris), to find his old love letters to her mother, for which a publisher if offering a hefty sum.
The Good
- Zooey, Zooey, Zooey. The doe-eyed actress really shines as a self-destructive artist, eventually becoming an odd rock around which the morose cast of characters revolve around.
- Will Ferrell plays Corbit, an introverted musician, and a more subdued, pensive, and downright odd — it’s good to see Ferrell try some different things.
- Seems loosely based on reclusive author J.D. Salinger.
The Bad
- Depressing situations and circumstances; people trapped in a prison mostly of their own making.
- Often plodding and slow.
- Seems confused between eccentric comedy, straight-up drama, or a character study. I mean, Will Ferrel plus Ed Harris?
Conclusion
Ferrel and Deschanel played off each other in a much more familiar flick: Elf. The only thing this film shares with that one is snow: while Elf was uplifting and zany, Winter Passing is sad, depressing, and oddly unrewarding.
That said, Deschanel convinced me Reese learned something from her experience, even if I didn’t. After that, hearing Ferrel sing an Eagles song in a dive bar is a nice bonus. Worth a rental.
IMDB: Winter Passing
Wikipedia: Winter Passing
Rotten Tomatoes: Winter Passing
I’m with ya — kinda interesting, but mostly bleak and dreary. I do like Will Ferrill better when he’s not trying quite so hard to be funny, but this went a bit too far to the other extreme.
Yeah — it had a few moments that were interesting, and rabid Zooey
Deschanel fans will be pleased, but overall this is one of those “glad
I didn’t pay good money to see in the theater, but passable as a
rental” type movies. Hence the three stars.