A Long Way Down
(2014) – There’s something very British in the idea of making a dark comedy
about four people who decide not to commit suicide because they’ve all ended up
at the top of the same tall building. The thing is, this adaptation of the Nick
Hornby novel struggles to capture the complexity of the characters and, more
importantly, never quite figures out whether it wants to be a dark comedy, a
sentimental tragicomedy, or a slice-of-life character sketch. Consequently, it
comes off very unevenly, failing to navigate the mood swings that Hornby’s text
deftly juggled. The good news, however, is that A Long Way Down isn’t unwatchable, and its ensemble cast acquits
themselves admirably and compellingly. Pierce Brosnan plays a jaded broadcaster
with a criminal record, while Toni Collette is gently heartbreaking as the
helpless mother of a disabled son. But it’s Aaron Paul as the disaffected
guitarist and Imogen Poots as the spirited Jess who manage to walk off with the
film wholesale, spot-on casting from the novel. It’s a shame, though, that these
two have the bulk of their characterization stripped in the transition from
book to film, such that there’s actually a moment – I kid you not – where Jess
asks the rest to sum up their reason for suicide in one word. The internal
monologue from the novel was much richer, but as cinematic adaptations go A Long Way Down isn’t a catastrophe.
It’s a pleasant enough diversion, and at ninety-six minutes it has the good
sense not to overstay its welcome.
That does it for this week’s edition of “Monday at the Movies.” We’ll see you here next week!
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