Elijah Wood
Performer for Our Time
Everything Is Illuminated
(2005)
Review
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Elijah Wood Performer for Our Time Everything Is Illuminated (2005) Review |
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Everything Is Illuminated (2005) |
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Edward C. Patterson, site owner |
A+
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A wall filled with visuals—objects captured from one’s life and the lives of those you love—like photographs, only more meaningful, more poignant. That is the world of Jonathan Safran Foer, an introspective young Jew, who is afraid that if he doesn’t collect these bits of memorabilia—time snippets in the stream of his heritage, that he will forget. Like the collection or the cricket engulfed and preserved in amber, Everything Is Illuminated is a visual feast, a smorgasbord of wonders that comes back to haunt you long after the theater lights come up—haunt like Elijah Wood’s eyes as he takes us on this journey, or as he said in a recent interview with Jay Leno, "on your typical Ukrainian road trip." That sums up this film's uniqueness. A small film with a small cast of three members, a peasant woman and a dog (extras galore), Everything Is Illuminated feels much larger, because it is. The weight of the outer journey, the comedy of Eugene Hutz, the anger of Boris Leskin and Elijah Wood’s inward focus rivets the viewer, making them settle in their seats and watch closely. The film means to Illuminate you, to make you see; and you see the world, both wide and small, present and past, sweet and bitter-sweet (never sour) through the eyes of a self-proclaimed blind man, a near sighted Jew, a self-absorbed loser and a seeing-eye bitch. The film deliberately misleads us into thinking it’s a comedy. The moment when the comedy turns off, we hear thunder (distant thunder) that grows louder as we approach the true track of the tale. We think we are on Jonathan’s journey, only to find out that the true tale is that of Alex and his Grandfather, that Jonathan is nothing more than the facilitator—the Illuminator, if you will. Newcomer Eugene Hutz, from the Gypsy Rock group Gogol Bordello (which supplies some of the music and extras), is a wonderful surprise. Comedy and bastardized English dialogue can wear thin if not supported by a keen sense of who the character is and where he’s going. It’s called acting, and Hutz turns in a bravura performance. Boris Leskin as the blustering Grandfather shows his mettle in the role, moving from irascible old codger to heroic stature as the twist ending unfolds, is illuminated if you will. Elijah Wood turns in one of his top notch performances, different from anything he has attempted prior and certainly separates us from views of Frodo Baggins and Kevin the Cannibal. He avoids any hint of emotion, even when the moment calls for it, even when the terrible events of the past could easily catapult him into Learian passion. He abstains and delivers a subtle, crafted performance, which brings an already gifted actor up several notches in his art and craft. A small piece with a limited release (more the pity), Everything Is Illuminated is a film for our time starring a Performer for our Time, who leads us through his battery of assorted facial expressions and collection of captured moments, much like the collection he bags in Ziploc. This reviewer was certainly bagged by the emotional roll that is facilitated by three great performances across a visually splendid film—I guess it’s "your typical Ukrainian Road trip movie." I saddle up and give it an A+. |