'Trainwreck': What Raillery
 Popcorn Column
by Michael S. Goldberger
|
Universal Pictures
Greg, Rachel and Earl face life and death in this Sundance-winning slice of modern teen angst. |
Point of disclosure No. 593: My favorite film genre is the screwball comedy ... movies like Preston Sturges's "Sullivan's Travels" (1941), "The Great McGinty" (1940), "The Lady Eve" (1941), and George Cukor's "The Philadelphia Story" (1940), to name an iconic few.
While director Judd Apatow's very funny "Trainwreck," about a wayward career lass's search for love and truth, can't hold a candle to those romantic comedy classics, it's at least in the same movie house, just a different row. Evincing similar DNA, you can make the case that it's the contemporary heir.
Of course, exercising a much more liberal interpretation of the First Amendment than its forebears, as well as unabashedly mirroring the current mores of the society from whence it springs, this isn't your grandmother's frivolous farce. That is, unless she was Mae West. Even this enlightened critic, while witnessing protagonist Amy's reckless gallivant through the courting process, was surprised to see what is now considered acceptable in modern film. Only it really isn't. The so-called profanities and divulgences are actually meant to get a rise out of us.
 |
|
|
| out of 4 | ||
Amy Schumer's Amy would doubtless be put in stocks back in Colonial times and, unless hailing from wealthy genes in any succeeding time period, would be scorned as a you-know-what. However, to paraphrase a mantra that used Women's Lib to sell us cigarettes and illness, we've come a long way, baby, exemplified by Amy's, er, progressive attitude. However, as outlandish as her Devil-may-care social life may strike us, intellectually it begs consideration of the expression, "What's good for the goose is good for the gander," only in reverse order.
Thus, while tittering, chuckling and OMG'ing at Amy's risky, if no longer bad, behavior, we can't help but also contemplate the changing social landscape. It goes back and forth you know, our moral code and vanity, reacting to pressures both obvious and unseen, adjusting to what we perceive is necessary to our well-being. And Amy, a very intelligent young lady, albeit currently a top scribe for a men's magazine catering to its readers' gossipier instincts, is fully aware of the dynamic in which she swirls. Problem is, she's not too happy about it, not really.
But she is hip, resolute and the staunch, living embodiment of her adopted anti-romanticism. Though she keeps a perfunctory boyfriend (John Cena) in tow, a hulking Neanderthal specifically chosen for his implausibility in any truly serious future plans, she is otherwise a prolific free agent. In short, unless circumstances deter, neither she nor her conquests spend the entire night.
All of this is humorously foretold in the prologue when, at about the age of 10, Amy's Lothario dad, nuttily played by Colin Quinn, explains to her and her sister why he is divorcing their mom. Meaning to emblazon a lesson in their psyches, he asks that they repeat aloud, "Monogamy isn't realistic." It's comforting to know that popular psychology still plays a part in speciously exampling cause and effect in movie plots. Not to nitpick, but only to play Devil's advocate, there's an inherent contradiction here, an ambiguity, if not out and out hypocrisy.
Fact is, this is merely a morality play dressed in avant-garde clothing. But that's all well and good. We were looking for a somewhat traditional love story in the first place, and if this is how today's convention says it should be clothed, so be it.
You see, for all the ballyhoo about feminism and denying the existence of true love, Amy is subconsciously looking for a guy, yes she is: a prince charming, a knight in shining armor, an honest soul worthy of her inner goodness and wit. In any case, it's what we want for her.
So it only follows that, when she's assigned to do an article on Bill Hader's engagingly portrayed Dr. Aaron Conners, famous sports physician to LeBron James, et al, we hold our breath as if we were her mom ... "a doctor." Voila! It's the romance you paid for at the box office. Peel the naughty packaging and you'll recognize the predictability.
But that's OK. While told in the vernacular of the day, the amusingly silly saga of opposites attracting wins us over thanks to Schumer and Hader's superb repartee and the fanciful hopefulness they exude. As your dear Aunt Helen might opine, they make a nice couple.
Director Apatow, who is to zany-raunch what the aforementioned Cukor and Sturges are to screwball comedy, has a firm hand on the subgenre. While moral motifs are of course exaggerated, there is nonetheless a clever and time capsule-worthy parody of the present. Add it all up and it's the only time that a "Trainwreck" is a laughing matter.
"Trainwreck," rated R, is a Universal Pictures release directed by Judd Apatow and stars Amy Schumer, Judd Apatow and Colin Quinn. Running time: 125 minutes
