Thursday, Oct. 13, 2011

Everything Must Go

Based on a Raymond Carver short story, this is a chance for Will Ferrell to stretch out a bit. Ferrell plays an alcoholic who loses his job, his wife, his home – yeah, it’s a comedy. OK, a dark comedy about a guy who loses everything and decides to live on his front lawn with all of his belongings. It’s a tale of deconstruction – breaking a man to pieces, to get down to the basis of who he really is when you strip away all the trappings he’s burdened by, only to build him back up, leaving the past behind and becoming something different, better. Ferrell carries the movie and it’s never boring. He slips into his comedic, overacting occasionally but it’s a minimal distraction. A human movie with heart, Ferrell veers in these directions every few years and it’s much-needed. No, you won’t bust a gut but you will enjoy it all the same. Worth a rent.