by Vincent Abbatecola
Seventeen years ago, writer-director Sofia Coppola (daughter of Francis Ford Coppola) gave audiences the superb romantic comedy-drama, Lost in Translation, which starred Bill Murray as an actor who visits Japan and becomes friends with another traveling American, played by Scarlett Johansson. What unfolded was a story that was as joyous as it was heartbreaking.
Now, Coppola reunites with Murray for her latest film, On the Rocks, a romantic-comedy that revels in its sweet and genuine examination of different kinds of relationships as they face a few bumps in the road.
Laura (Rashida Jones) and Dean (Marlon Waynes) are a couple with two children living in New York City, but she feels as if they’re drifting apart, due to Dean’s late nights at work. Soon, Laura’s father, Felix (Murray), insists that the two of them follow Dean to find out where, and with whom he’s spending his mysterious, out-of-the-house hours.
Just as Jones accomplished in her starring role in Lee Toland Krieger’s 2012 romantic-comedy, Celeste and Jesse Forever, she’s able to evoke both the laughs and the heartache that come into a relationship. It’s a compassionate performance where she displays her character’s mind that always seems to be sifting through what’s going on in her life and thinking that something is wrong, but wanting to believe so badly that there isn’t anything about which to worry. Jones displays the deep care that Laura has for her family, and in between the laughs, her loving performance keeps you hoping that everything will turn out okay.
Murray is as charming as ever as Laura’s father. Not only is Murray his typical, humorous self, but his character is a heartwarming presence as he tries to connect with his daughter and help her through her marital issues. His character is someone who wishes to help his daughter, but is also an individual who shows a lightness as he jokes around and presents an easygoing aura that could act as a source of calm to Laura. Murray brings to life a character who, if you met him on the street, you would be won over by him in seconds, and you always have a big smile on your face whenever Murray surprises you with whichever talents his character might express.
The bond that Jones and Murray share is made possible by the blend of their engaging performances. Watching the two of them converse and get into mischief allows them to display their comedic talents as they develop a father-daughter relationship that never loses any of its wit or emotion. The movie isn’t just focused on Laura and her father following Dean, but is also just as focused on deconstructing Laura and Felix’s bond and providing insight into what has happened in the past, and how they are going to move forward. With this, the combined work from Jones and Murray make this a fun, humorous mystery in the vibrancy of the city streets.
Although Coppola’s screenplay can seem a little thin, she still shows an ability to provide an authentic view at different kinds of relationships. Before Felix arrives to the story, the film takes its time in establishing the tension that Laura experiences as more and more evidence comes into play concerning Dean’s possible infidelity. By the time Laura and Felix begin following Dean halfway through the movie, we have already spent enough time with her and Dean looking into their relationship and learning about them, and this allows us to feel the emotional stakes that drive the rest of the story.
In her screenplay, Coppola revisits themes of alienation and detachment, but from a new angle. While Coppola explored these themes in Lost in Translation between two strangers meeting each other while abroad, in On the Rocks, she focuses on characters who are trying to repair bonds that have already been established. While Lost in Translation has its two main characters building a relationship from the start, this one has its characters trying to fix what’s already there, whether it be Laura and Dean’s marriage or Laura and Felix’s father-daughter relationship. Through Coppola’s dialogue, her characters provide us with a poignant and witty insight into what their relationships have been like both before the events of the film and what they are during the events of the film.
Coppola’s direction is the kind of filmmaking that does superb work in focusing on how the characters interact, capturing their innermost feelings by allowing the camera to linger on them as they process different things that are told to them. Just as she accomplished with Lost in Translation, Coppola can make you feel the deep bond between two people as they try to connect and learn about each other. Aside from that, Coppola provides a quick, but fun and stylishly shot chase along a busy city street as Laura and Felix attempt to go after a taxi that has picked up Dean and his supposed girlfriend.
On the Rocks continues Coppola’s ability to tell absorbing stories of people trying to connect. You always feel like you’re watching real people, and with this movie, you become attached to the characters trying to overcome their own detachment.
Grade: A-