What do a dead dog in the trunk and Marilyn Monroe's wedding coat have in common? The fine movie Wonder Boys ties up these two loose ends (and many more) before the final credits roll.
Michael Douglas stars as Grady Tripp, a small town college English professor, who had a sensational novel to his credit seven years ago. Lately, however, Tripp's literary out put has been nil. But he claims he's not blocked -- no, he's actually on page 2610 of his latest novel. The problem is, he can't seem to get it moving to an ending.
Tobey Maguire plays student James Leer. Leer is a dark, somber, brooding, Catholic type of person. Anybody would question his motives for carrying a gun to a party. Tripp does so -- and thus begins a strange several-day odyssey that clarifies Tripps's situation:
Grady Tripp's wife has left him. He is in the middle of an extreme mid-life crisis. As stated, he's "blocked". He's having an affair with his boss (Oscar winner Frances McDormand), whom he has impregnated. His boss's husband's Marilyn Monroe's wedding coat has disappeared. He has a dead dog in the trunk of his car. But it's not his car. His literary agent (Robert Downey Jr) is putting pressure on him to produce, dammit! The cutest student in the whole wide world (Katie Holmes) is putting the moves on him. And, finally, he is trying to salvage student Leer from desolation so that he might become a productive writer.
There! All clear? Good!
Director Curtis Hanson delivers all this and more in a droll, easy to follow fashion. Humor abounds throughout, leavening the seriousness of Tripp's various situation(s).
A word about the soundtrack: It's wonderful! The movie opens and closes with Bob Dylan singing "Things Have Changed", written for this movie. I have purchased the CD, and highly recommend it as a great "various artists" album. After all, any movie featuring four songs by Dylan implies a great deal of sophistication on the part of the producers.
Finally, though, this review is of the movie. I recommend it to you. It's a great deal of fun, easy to follow, and well worth the price of admission.
Then, the soundtrack:
Wonder Boys has become an instant exception to my rule that motion picture soundtracks feature mediocre music.
First, a word about the liner notes. The album producers note the "wonder boy" phenomenon as it relates to the movie's Grady Tripp, played by Michael Douglas. Tripp is a "wonder boy", that is, he has tasted success and is now mired in career-numbing inertia. They also pay homage to singer/songwriters, who are capable of expressing this bittersweetness in song. Then, they offer thanks to Bob Dylan (himself a singer/songwriter/wonder boy) for writing a song expressly for this movie.
Now, many of you already know that Dylan is my favorite popular musician ... ever. That the album's producers have seen fit to include four Dylan songs on this soundtrack indicates a high level of sophistication on the part of soundtrack's producers, as well as the movie's.
Now, down to the music. Bob Dylan is represented by four selections: 1) "Things Have Changed" is a beautiful new work, written just for the movie. It truly expresses what the movie's producers (I think) had in mind for the movie's mood. 2) "Shooting Star" -- a different version than found on Dylan's album Oh Mercy. "Not Dark Yet" -- this is the version form Dylan's album Time Out Of Mind. "Buckets Of Rain" is the version found on Blood On The Tracks. Thus, Dylan is well represented, both as a mood-setter and as a representative of the "wonder boys" era. You are invited to read my review of Bob Dylan at:
http://homepage.epinions.com/musc-review-7392-11BE39B7-38384081-bd3
Also, Dylan's official web site is:
http://bobdylan.com/
Buffalo Springfield's "A Child's Claim To Fame" nicely recreates the mood of the '60s. It has a terrific jug-band sound, giving the impression you're listening to The Lovin' Spoonful. This song was originally released in 1967.
"No Regrets" by Tom Rush is not featured in the movie. Still, it is a wonderful example of the strong feeling a singer/songwriter can bring to his own work.
Neil Young is represented by "Old Man". One of my favorite Young offerings.
You've probably heard "Reason To Believe" as sung by Rod Stewart. Give a listen to the author's version. Tim Hardin wrote and released this in 1966. Hardin gives such depth of feeling to his composition that Stewart's pales very badly in comparison. It's the difference between loving your work and interpreting someone else's for a paycheck. Hardin came to everyone's attention during the folk explosion of the '60s, then faded from view without ever achieving his deserved recognition. Alas, in order to hear Hardin's version, you will have to purchase the album -- it's not featured in the movie.
"Need Your Love So Bad" is sung by Little Willie John. This wonderful blues feels a little out of place on this "pop" album. Yet, when you see the bar scene that is covered by this song, it seems to fit right into the movie.
In an exception to the singer/songwriter theme, Clarence Carter sings "Slip Away". A very nice (and familiar) rendition of this Motown classic.
How could this album get any better, you ask? By including Leonard Cohen's "Waiting For The Miracle". The version heard here is from Cohen's album The Future. This is a very long song -- so much the better because I love Cohen. Please see my review of Cohen at:
http://homepage.epinions.com/musc-review-36FE-188C637-38C1CE0F-prod8
You can learn more about Leonard Cohen at his web site:
http://www.sonymusic.com/artists/LeonardCohen/index.html
John Lennon (another wonder boy) sings his familiar "Watching The Wheels". This song's inclusion is pure genius.
The album ends with Van Morrison singing "Philosophers Stone" from his album Back On Top. Again, this song nicely reflects the movie's mood.
Wonder Boys is a beautiful album. Not just because it must evoke the mood of the movie, but because it contains such wonderful music. Give it a listen. You can't possibly be disappointed.
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