This Blu-ray title from MVD Visual is currently available for purchases at most retail outlets.
Writer/director Noah Baumbach made a big splash with his 1995 debut feature, Kicking and Screaming. Despite its buzz and success on the indie circuit, one can safely say that the noted filmmaker still hadn’t found his footing just yet. He has made a name for himself with a string of critically acclaimed, Oscar-nominated titles like Marriage Story, Mistress America, While We’re Young, Frances Ha and The Squid and the Whale. While many of those projects will be very familiar to readers, there were a few movies in between that haven’t seen as much attention and are ripe for rediscovery and reappraisal.
One of these features is Mr. Jealousy, the second feature from Baumbach. While reasonably well received, this comedy underperformed at the box office and hasn’t received a lot of attention in recent years. Thankfully, MVD Visual have picked up the rights and are now giving the film it’s Blu-ray debut. Like many early efforts from noted auteurs, the figure behind the lens is clearly still finding his voice and isn’t firing on all cylinders. Still, there’s plenty to enjoy in this sweet effort, which has many memorable lines and chuckle-worthy moments.
The story is narrated by Lester Grimm (Eric Stoltz), a young New York writer in something of a rut. He’s experiencing a creative block and falling into routines, also noting his loneliness and problems with woman that date back to childhood. After witnessing a girl that he had a crush on kiss another boy, Lester has developed a subtly jealous and distrusting personality. He’s certainly not mean or cruel, but he does obsess over the ex-boyfriends of his romantic partners, finding himself following people and unintentionally destroying how own relationships. When he meets free-spirited Ramona Ray (Annabella Sciorra), Lester feels happy and contented. However, he soon learns that one of her exes is a famous novelist named Dashiell Frank (Chris Eigeman).
Concerned that Ramona might dump him for Dashiell given the fact that he is far more famous and successful, the protagonist develops an ill-advised plan. In order to learn more, he tails the ex and joins the prominent novelist’s group therapy meetings, hosted by Dr. Howard Poke (Peter Bogdanovich). Lester uses the name of his best friend Vince (Carlos Jacott) as well as his pal’s personal issues as his cover story. But as time passes, things get significantly more complicated. The lead struggles to keep his various lies straight during his elaborate investigation. He also ends up spending less time with Ramona, causing friction in the relationship and, in the process, becomes friendly with Dashiell.
Naturally, this isn’t a big budget flick and the emphasis is on the humorous conversations between the various eccentric characters. The material certainly has a Woody Allen-esque feel, with a charismatic but deeply flawed protagonist who ends up essentially responsible for creating all of his own problems. While the movie is subdued and is rarely side-splittingly funny, this is an enjoyable concept for a rom-com with plenty of tension as more and more awkward situations arise.
Flashbacks to pervious issues in Lester’s love life are amusingly handled and the movie gets plenty of comedic mileage out of the group therapy meetings. Considering that Lester is pretending to be his own best friend Vince, it is funny to hear the attendee get defensive when others critique the behavior of his ”best friend”. More issues arise when the real Vince, an anxious figure about to be married, begins to seek out the group’s professional advice about his own life. And naturally, things get entertaining when characters accidentally interact. Vince is eventually invited into the group himself. In order to keep up the ruse, he is forced into creating a different and not-very-convincing new personality for the meetings.
All of the performers are excellent and their authenticity helps sell some of the more exaggerated devices being utilized. Stoltz has a tough job given some of his behavior, but his narration and genial manner help viewers to understand the insecurity brimming within (some of which he isn’t even aware of). And the movie gets laughs from the rationalizations and attempted explanations for his irrational acts. The rest of the performers are engaging and there are even memorable supporting turns from Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Bridget Fonda. It’s also fun to see The Last Picture Show director Peter Bogdanovich take on his first acting role (he would later become a regular on The Sopranos and play a similar character).
The movie isn’t likely to be regarded as a classic, but one can see definite elements in this film that would become more defined and focused in later works. It is fairly safe to say that while imperfect and clearly made quickly and on-the-fly, there is plenty of sharp dialogue and entertaining material to enjoy. The image quality looks like a significant upgrade over previous DVD and VHS releases, which should help this Blu-ray of Mr. Jealousy earn plenty of new fans.
Besides the film itself, there is also a 41-minute documentary called Revisiting Mr. Jealousy. It features interviews with producer Joel Castelberg, as well as cast members Brian Kerwin and Peter Bogdanovich. Interview footage with Baumbach himself is also included, in which he discusses the movie and notes some of the issues he had with his own work at the time. It’s an interesting and informative piece. The producer goes into great detail about how they secured the nearly $2 million dollar budget to make the movie and how they chose the notable locations. There are some great casting stories, particularly regarding how difficult it was to get an actress to agree to play Ramona. Believe it or not, Jennifer Aniston was initially cast and ready to co-star, but her agents weren’t enthused about the indie film and ultimately forced her to back out of the part. The same situation occurred weeks later with Jennifer Lopez.
Many of the cast were already friendly and knew each other and that’s how several other performers with connections to found themselves in the film. All involved enjoyed the experience and had a great time making the movie. There’s also some discussion about Baumbach’s follow-up project, Highball, and how it was made. Apparently, the producer and cast managed to secure $200,000 to shoot this improvised comedy about a party with much of the same cast and crew immediately after wrapping production. Castelberg laments that despite Mr. Jealousy being the much stronger movie, Highball ended up getting more attention and making more money for the distributor.
While Baumbach isn’t entirely thrilled with this period in his career and suggests the project forced him into focusing his skills and finding out what he wanted to say as a moviemaker, there is still plenty to enjoy about Mr. Jealousy. In the end, it’s a fascinating look into the development of a major artist and the movie itself is far more entertaining than the early movies of many major talents. Those who appreciate Noah Baumbach’s work are well-advised to pick up this Blu-ray.