CLEAR HISTORY Appeal Is Murky

Article first published as CLEAR HISTORY Review on Seat42F.

For those missing Curb Your Enthusiasm, HBO recently premiered CLEAR HISTORY. Written by, and starring, Larry David, the tone and humor is pretty much the same, with David inhabiting a similar character. This should tide fans over until David decides to make another season of his well-received comedy series.

The basic premise is of a man named Nathan (David) who gets into a silly argument with his boss, Will (Jon Hamm, Mad Men), leading to Nathan losing his job just before a massive launch of a new car that would have made him a billion dollars. Ten years later, Nathan is living as a drastically different looking guy named Rolly in Martha’s Vineyard, seemingly having escaped his past. That is, until Will shows up on the island, and Rolly begins plotting his revenge.

CLEAR HISTORY is inferior to Curb Your Enthusiasm, so don’t go in expecting an hour-and-a-half episode of the show. David still goes after silly, everyday gripes, but instead of harping on them for thirty minutes, with earlier events coming back full circle, most are dealt with in thirty seconds and then dropped. This is a shame, as there is certainly ripe material here that could fill many installments of Curb, wasted as throwaway gags.

What I don’t buy is that Rolly is considered the nicest guy around. At first, he seems to have turned over a new leaf, not harping on the little things that Nathan used to. But throughout the movie, Rolly makes more enemies than friends, and loses a few chums along the way. Has he turned just because of Will’s presence? It seems doubtful, especially as no character makes that observation.

The ending is contrived, and while a few threads seem to tie together, they don’t play into the final scenes, ruining the setup. Also, the story just can’t decide what it wants to be. For large stretches of the running time, it is a cohesive tale, but then it sometimes falls apart into a series of bits, and the ending is far from satisfying or complete. That is probably the biggest weakness of the project.

Which is not to say CLEAR HISTORY isn’t enjoyable. There are some brilliant turns by wonderful comedic performers, and those alone are worth tuning in for.

The most stand out performance is that of Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan) as Tibor, the Czechoslovakian man who sells Rolly an ignition switch, and then gets in a car wreck with him. Tibor’s look and accent are humorous, but it’s more the absolute confusion that he has towards Rolly, not understanding what’s going on when Rolly is involved, and not getting why Rolly isn’t afraid of him, that plays so darn well. Sadly, it is an uncredited role, as Schreiber stars in a series for a rival pay channel.

Among the rest of the cast are familiar faces like Michael Keaton (Batman, Toy Story), J.B. Smoove (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Amy Ryan (The Office), Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live), Danny McBride (Eastbound & Down), Eva Mendes (Hitch), Amy Landecker (Dan in Real Life), Patty Ross (The Heat), Paul Scheer (The League), Chicago (the 25 or 6 to 4 band), and many more. Each, without fail, not only fits well into this contrived world, but does an outstanding job of selling the scenes they are involved in. They are not the weakness of the piece, and each is not only funny, but also seems to be really glad to have this job, a definite plus.

A particular element I really enjoy is that of Will’s wife, Rhonda (Kate Hudson, Glee, Almost Famous). At first, she seems a pushover whom Rolly can worm his way in with. But the direction the script goes with her as things play out not only fits with her character nicely, even after a few turns, but also rises above the predictable and expected.

Overall, while not as impressed with CLEAR HISTORY as I have been with other David works, it is a nice little snack as we await his next great project.

RAY DONOVAN Chooses "The Bag or the Bat"

Article first published as RAY DONOVAN Review on Seat42F.

Grade: 91%

Showtime’s RAY DONOVAN is a series about an L.A. man named Ray Donovan (Liev Schreiber, Taking Woodstock, Salt) who is a fixer, someone who can solve everyone’s problems but his own. That’s a very familiar type on television today, echoed across a number of networks and programs. So why should you tune into such a familiar concept?

Well, for one thing, it’s Liev Schreiber. Like other top leading men, he is a wonderful actor with range and depth. And he is surrounded by other notable performers, who we’ll get to in a minute. So even though the story is pretty pat, it’s still entertaining to watch actors at the top of their game.

Ray, like a Tony Soprano or a Marty Kaan, is surrounded by people that count on him, and think he is the only one that can help them. There’s his brother Terry (Eddie Marsan, Little Dorrit), a boxer with Parkinson’s. And his other brother Bunch (Dash Mihok, Greetings From Home), who was molested by a priest as a kid, and now suffers from substance abuse problems. And Ray’s biracial half-brother, who he has just found out about, Daryll (Pooch Hall, The Game).

Ray also has his more immediate family, his wife, Abby (Paula Malcolmson, Caprica), whom he has promised to stop cheating on, and his children, Bridget (Kerris Dorsey, Brothers & Sisters) and Conor (Devon Bagby). Ray very much cares about them, even when he and Abby fight, and between them and his brothers, he has his hands full as head of the family.

Then, in the first episode, “The Bag or the Bat,” Ray’s father, Mickey (Jon Voight, 24, National Treasure), whom Ray himself sent to jail, gets out five years early on parole. Suddenly, Ray has another alpha dog to contend with, someone who doesn’t mind being a bad influence, and whom Ray’s family is drawn to, either from a need for acceptance, or because they don’t know any better.

This is a mess, to be sure. Ray has already overcome so much, including his sister’s death, which still haunts him, so one will assume that he can beat Mickey, too. After all, he has to if he wants to maintain his position as protector and leader of the clan. But might this be the straw that breaks the camel’s back? Might Mickey be too much for Ray to handle, with Mickey having had a long time to plan his return, and Ray taken by surprise?

It doesn’t help that Ray’s professional life chooses this exact moment to fall apart, too. Ezra (Elliott Gould, Ocean’s Eleven, MASH), the man who brings Ray to the West Coast in the first place, is going senile and wants to come clean about all the shady things they’ve done, and Ray’s colleague Lee (Peter Jacobson, House) can’t handle Ezra alone. Plus, there’s temptation when a young woman who Ray helped out years ago re-enters the picture with designs on Ray.

So to say Ray is at a tipping point, with everything in his life poised on the brink of disaster, is an understatement, if anything. Ray is facing a lot of challenges on many fronts, and doesn’t quite know how to handle them. A man of few words, all of this plays out mainly on his face, and Schreiber does a stellar job conveying the complex emotions and stresses of the role.

Which is why it’s easy to sympathize with Ray when he gets the simple pleasure of beating a stalker with a baseball bad. Given the option “The Bag or the Bat,” the creep initially chooses the bag, but goes back on his deal, causing Ray to return and cause pain. It’s the moment of the first hour where Ray seems the most raw and pure, totally in his element, blowing off some steam.

Ray’s job may be his salvation. He’s clearly very good at it, even if he gets a little too personally involved with certain clients. In the opening sequence, he solves two very messy situations at once with some creative thinking, proving his sharp with matches his brawn, and that he is a natural born decision maker. Perhaps, if he can pour his energy into his career, ignoring anyone who causes him distractions, he can eventually find the strength to deal with everything else.

Or it will all erupt in spectacular fashion, which is what the people want to see, anyway. Ray Donovan is a man in a precarious position. Only by watching further installments will we learn if he will thrive or crack under the pressure. With a cast this good, and a story well written, I’ll be tuning in to see more.

RAY DONOVAN airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on Showtime.

Taking Woodstock for a spin

     Ang Lee's (Brokeback Mountain) newest film came out on DVD a week ago.  Taking Woodstock stars Demetri Martin (The Daily Show With Jon Stewart) as a young man who, trying to help his parents avoid foreclosure on their hotel, brings the famous Woodstock festival to his hometown, turning it upside down.  While many in the town protest, others enjoy the commerce and attention.  Soon a million hippies invade, bringing their peaceful, drug-filled, sex-fueled ways.  The movie meandered at a slow pace, but stayed interesting.  It was a journey of self-discovery for not only Martin's Elliot, but also his parents, played by Henry Goodman and the fantastic Imelda Staunton (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix).  Both delivered superb performances, proving that you are never too old to undergo a transformation and be true to who you really are.

     Adding to the humor and full picture of this small town was Eugene Levy (American Pie, Best in Show) as the farmer who rented his fields out for the festival and pocketed every penny he could, and Liev Schreiber as Vilma, the cross dressing security guard.  The latter, in particular, was a surprising delight.  It was a part that was a real departure from Schreiber, and his mother hen rendition could not have been more appropriate.  He played huge roles in each of the main character's plots.

      The tone was great, and unlike many recent releases, the concert was never really shown in the movie.  That wasn't what was important.  It was a character-driven piece, seeking to capture a moment and spirit in American history, and largely succeeding.  Plus, there was lots of non-sexual nudity, something not so common in modern cinema.  I would highly recommend this film.