leeper@mtgzy.att.com (Mark R. Leeper) (04/12/91)
DEFENDING YOUR LIFE
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1991 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: Find out where Southern Californians go
when they die. Albert Brooks's life-after-death comedy is
charming and fun, but sidesteps substance. Rating: low +1.
Albert Brooks writes, directs, and stars in subtle little comedies
about human foibles. He has a good feel for small characters and a good ear
for dialogue. His MODERN ROMANCE has him wooing a beautiful woman with whom
he is unable to get along. His LOST IN AMERICA has him quitting a good job
in a fit of pique and then going out in an RV to discover a real America
that is not what he thought it was. Each gives a hint what he thinks life
is about, but it is open to some interpretation. In DEFENDING YOUR LIFE he
turns to fantasy so instead of hinting he can come right out and state his
values.
A Brooksian character, Daniel, dies on his birthday and finds himself
in a very Californian view of an afterlife. In Judgment City he is given a
hearing to defend his life and the way that he has led it. At stake is
whether he will attain a higher plane in the next life or not. Rather than
just hint at his values, the way Brooks as screenwriter did in previous
films, he now can posit a heavenly host who can say, "This is the standard
by which you will be judged." And his standard comes down to "Be brave."
If you do not insist on the salary you think you deserve, if you do not take
a chance on your investments, if you do not have sex with someone when you
want it, it will be held against you in Brooks's afterlife. Ethics count
for nothing. Helping others if not done in a spectacular feat of courage
counts for nothing. Courage is what counts. What could have been a view
into Brooks's personal philosophy suffers greatly from the apparent
shallowness of that philosophy.
At heart then, the film misses a chance to be about something profound
and instead is just another film like L. A. STORY and SCENES FROM A MALL
about California values. This particular vision of Limbo-adjusted-for-
Californians is a vision of what Brooks thinks his contemporaries would like
in an afterlife. It is garish hotels and gourmet food. You can eat as much
as you like without worrying about calories, cholesterol, or capacity.
During the day you have hearings on your integrity as a person, then at
night you can go hear a comic or see what you were in previous lives in a
sort of upscale convention center.
Brooks's character meets and falls in love with the perfect woman,
Julia (played by Meryl Streep). She is easy-going and affable and was a
hero in her previous life. Julia is not so much a woman as a walking good
example. She is sailing through judgment while Daniel is having serious
problems with a strident prosecutor (played by Lee Grant) and an enigmatic
and strange attorney played by Rip Torn.
DEFENDING YOUR LIFE is diverting, but the ending is weak and the
philosophy is shallow. I rate it a low +1 on the -4 to +4 scale.
Mark R. Leeper
att!mtgzy!leeper
leeper@mtgzy.att.comlmann@jjmhome.UUCP (Laurie Mann) (04/12/91)
DEFENDING YOUR LIFE
A film review by Laurie Mann
Copyright 1991 Laurie Mann
Albert Brooks is at it again, making another movie about one man's
quest to redeem himself. Brooks directed, acted, and starred in
Defending Your Life, the very funny story of a man defending his life
after his death.
Brooks is a Muppie (Middle-aged Urban Professional---what happens
to Yuppies after 35) who is clearly beloved by his coworkers. But on
his 39th birthday, Daniel (Brooks) absent-mindedly crashes his new BMW
convertible into a bus, and finds himself someplace else. The someplace
else is Judgement City, and it's a place people go after they die. At
first, Daniel is just dazed, and meekly does whatever he is told.
Judgement City is a wonderful creation, and Brooks deserves loads
of credit for creating the most amusing afterlife since BEETLEJUICE.
This is the afterlife as if the US government created it---everything is
very orderly, there are lots of glass towers, you can eat anything you
want and never gain weight, and people who behaved very well in their
lives get the best accommodations. Daniel, for example, winds up in a
place that's a lot like a Holiday Inn.
Daniel is instructed to go to meet his lawyer, Mr. Diamond. The
purpose of a stay in Judgement City is to see if you are ready to go
onto the "next stage," or if you need to return to Earth to conquer your
fears by living another life. He has to watch himself from nine
different days in his life and defend his actions. These scenes show
him to be basically well-meaning yet fearful.
When he isn't defending himself, Daniel discovers a woman, Julia
(wonderfully played by Meryl Streep). Julia is a very sweet, vivacious
woman for someone recently dead. She and Daniel take to each other
right away---after all, they are some of the few young people there.
It's clear that Julia is destined for the "next stage," and that Daniel,
no matter how good his intentions, is destined to return to Earth to try
again.
Here's a spoiler only if you've never seen a commercial or trailer
for the film:
The ending is shown in every commercial and trailer ever shown for
this movie. This was a mistake.
This movie is very sweet and good-natured and very funny. However,
aside from Brooks and Streep, the other performances were aggravatingly
muted. Jim, my husband, wished Robert Preston was alive to play Mr.
Diamond, because Rip Torn gave an annoying, two-note sort of
performance. Likewise, Lee Grant was utterly colorless as the
prosecuting attorney.
While there is much amusing in this movie, and I do recommend it
because the leads are so strong, Brooks belabors a few jokes. The
eating-all-you-want comments got to be a bit much, along with the "small
brain" jokes. I rate it a 7 on the Chuck scale.
Oh, members of the Gaffe Squad will notice a minor one when Daniel
and Diamond are eating lunch. I already sent a note about it to PREMIERE
magazine.
Laurie Mann
lmann%jjmhome@m2c.m2c.org
Laurie_Mann@vos.stratus.com
NeXT mail: lmann@vineland.pubs.stratus.com