This is Where I Leave You

It blows my mind that a movie based on a book that is so profound, so brilliant, so almost life - altering can end up being so damn mediocre. But that seems to be were we are with the movie This is Where I Leave You based on the excellent novel by Jonathan Tropper.  It's not bad, per se,  and maybe if I hadn't read and been so moved by the book, I would even have liked it more.

This is Where I Leave You is about the Altman family who sit shiva for the seven days following the death of their father. Of course, they are all angry and lonely and a mess, and all of their past feelings and actions creep back up on them during this week where they are stuck together non-stop.  Jason Bateman plays Judd, the perfect middle son whose got his shit together until he finds out his wife is sleeping with his boss. Corey Stoll plays oldest son Paul, the responsible dickish one who is struggling to have a baby with his baby obsessed wife (who used to be Judd's girlfriend). Tina Fey is daughter Wendy, who has an asshole husband and unresolved feelings for her high school sweetheart (Timothy Olyphant). Youngest brother Phillip (played by a scene stealing Adam Driver) is the mess up of the family who is struggling to get his life together with the help of his much older, rich girlfriend Tracy (Connie Britton). Then there is mom Jane Fonda who has new boobs and a seemingly healthy response to the death of her husband.

Here is the thing. The movie wants to be as good as the book, and it desperately tries to fit 300 pages of action into an hour and 45 minute long movie. It all feels so rushed and jumbled and it feels like we don't even get to really get to know these characters. The script isn't very good and the jokes which are supposed to be funny are mostly just chuckle inducing.  Some of the drama feels cliche,  though it doesn't feel that way in the book at all. Most of the performances are pretty spot on. Bateman is a master at deftly switching between comedic and dramatic moments.  It's only Tina Fey who disappoints.  It seems that she is just in a completely different movie tonally.  If there is one person trying to make this movie better, it is Girls star and future Star Wars guy Adam Driver. He easily has the most fun character and he gives it everything he's got. He is a manic ball of energy,  elevating every scene he is in. It is scene blessing more so than scene stealing. It's just a shame that no one else can keep up with him. It would be a much better movie if anyone else brought the same bottled up intensity.

Overall, maybe the movie is better if you didn't read the book. It's not bad. It is quite heart warming and crowd pleasing and a fine depiction of a dysfunctional family. When the movie is good, it totally sucks you in... it just doesn't stay that good for that long. Mostly if you had the choice between seeing the movie and reading the book, pick the book and thank me later.

Grade: C+