It is a challenge to thoroughly explore this drama. It's an
excellent film, which deals with many contemporary themes, with
great character development brought out by a superb cast with
chemistry. Whilst some might view this film through romantic
lenses, I'd prefer to view this film differently, from another
angle, probably because I'm a salaried man myself, and at times,
see myself in one of the characters now (no prizes for guessing
who).
This film's premise is steeped in the realities of today's business
world of mergers and acquisitions, layoffs associated, of office
politics and relationships, and of corporate jungle survival.
Dennis Quaid plays a Dan, a senior sales manager in his 50s,
juggling life with adolescent teenage daughters (the emphasis being
Scarlett Johansson's Alex) and his wife, who's expecting their
newborn baby, and with his job, when his company has just been
bought over and merged into a conglomerate. Suddenly his career is
filled with uncertainty, as everyone in the company is worried over
whether they'd still have their jobs once the dust settles, with
new management being put in place - and this means Dan is no longer
the main man, but the "wingman".
As with businesses these days, the emphasis is always on revenue,
sales numbers, and the bottom line. We are shown, through the cast
members, the pain of being laid off. It never is easy being a
manager, and the dread when you'd have to ask members of your team,
the team you picked and groomed, to leave. Some see it coming, some
take it in their stride, others just can't. And that's the job of
Dan's new manager Carter Duryea (played by fresh faced Topher
Grace), who's half Dan's age, tasked with increasing sales revenue,
and trimming the bottom line.
The film is also about relationships, and relationships here are
multi-fold. Dan and Carter do not hit it off on the right note,
basically because Carter just waltzes right into Dan's job, even
though he lacks the experience in the industry, but he's young,
energetic, and a proven go-getter. Dan feels threatened - it's
understandable, especially when you have to put food on the table,
put your kids to University, and going to have a new addition to
the family. You have mortgage to pay for, and I think many salaried
men will identify immediately with the situation at hand. Carter
knows he's a threat to Dan, but initially for his own selfish
reasons, he keeps Dan by his side (he needed someone with
experience to teach him the ropes), defying upper management
preference to lay Dan off because of his fat salary, thus he lays
off Dan's team members. One of the more poignant moment in the
film, the most realistic I think, is when faced with the reality of
survival, of You or the Other Man, what choice would you
make?
But slowly and steadily, a mentor-mentee relationship forms between
the two, until Carter falls for Dan's daughter Alex. Although their
romance takes a backseat to the relationship between Dan and
Carter, whatever romance is shown onscreen is sweet - their first
dates, their long walks, their worry of letting Dan discover their
secret. But there is also doubt if it'll work out - Alex wants to
concentrate on school, and is worried that Carter is on a rebound
after his divorce. Carter, on the other hand, we question his
intentions, whether he just wants someone to fill his loneliness,
or if he's really in love with Alex.
This film is also about the importance of family, and the lack
thereof. We see Dan with his very normal functional family - strong
relationships and love amongst everyone. Which Carter envies. We
see Carter's broken marriage, his unsupportive and adulterous wife
whom he divorces, a mention of his parents who separated, and of
his loneliness, which resulted in burning weekends at the office,
and inviting himself over to Dan's home for dinner, just to beat
being alone. He's a modern day poor little rich kid, and I identify
with him on the loneliness bit.
Sometimes. the film pokes fun at corporate values, mission
statements, themes of synergy, and showcases the office
balls-carrier. A good reminder is brought out in - in today's
world, the only constant is change, so break down your arrogance,
as you'll never know what the next merger or acquisition will
bring. One day you're at the top, the next you might be out.
Peppered throughout are contemporary folk songs, which just seem to
evoke the right emotions in you, at the right time it's played.
Making contributions are Peter Gabriel's Solsbury Hill and singer
of the moment Damien Rice's Cannonball.
Dennis Quaid is one of my favourite character actors, though I must
add that this is the first movie I've seen him in since
"Frequency". His Dan brings about the everyday man whom I can
probably identify with, when I'm 50. Topher Grace shines with his
role of Carter, the inexperience of youth being thrusted into the
limelight and given heavy responsibilities. He tries to impress his
new team with his can-do attitude, his enthusiasm for his job, but
scores zero on his personal life (hmm.. kinda like me, now). Heck
he even crashes his new Porsche when he leaves the showroom! And
Scarlett Johansson is an angel - showing vulnerability as a coming
of age teenager who has to decide whether to pursue her love for
Carter, or to realize the sacrifices her dad made to put her in
varsity, and to pursue her studies.
This show has a little something for everyone, and I'm sure you'll
find that the contemporary themes do ring a familiar bell in your
life. My review above might seem a little heavy, but hey, I'm
over-analysing, so no worries, go catch this one!
