Stars: Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Benicio Del Toro
Director: Alejandro Gonz�lez I��rritu
Released: 10/2003
Rating: 3 stars

21 Grams is a film that goes from confusing to, perhaps, brilliant, and then to weak and disappointing over the course of its 2 hour running time. I��rritu chooses to tell his story using the latest fad in indie film making: non-linear story telling. The story jumps around to different timelines with no apparent rhyme or reason. The story also follows three seemingly independant story lines: Paul Rivers (Sean Penn), the dying mathemetician; Cristian Peck (Naomi Watts), the happily married ex-party girl now living a quiet suburban life; and Jack Jordan (Benicio Del Torro), the ex-con now converted to Jesus and trying to reach out to other troubled young people. This combination makes for a very confusing first 20 minutes. But eventually, I��rritu starts to bring the plot lines together and the central story emerges. The story is an engrossing and compelling story of tragedy and guilt. The acting and writing are both superlative. Finally, the film becomes what I presume to be story of redemption, and it just doesn't work.

Some reviewers will compare the style of storytelling to that in Memento. Both films tell their stories without being confined to the normal flow of time. Some will call this non-linear, but really isn't correct. Memento was told in a linear way, just backwards. There was a valid reason for telling the story this way as the truly climactic event in the story--the moment where Leonard learns the truth about his life and the revelation of what he will do to maintain the illusions that have kept him going--occur at what would normally be the beginning of the story. Telling the story conventionally would have the climax being the killing of Teddy, but that's really just the consequence of what happened at the beginning. 21 Grams is told in a more truly non-linear fashion. There are three timelines at work in the story: before Paul's heart transplant, a few months after the transplant, and the climax which occurs some time even later. Scenes are taken from each of the timelines and thrown together for no apparent reason. To me, this is style for the sake of being stylish ("Look how clever I am as a director!"), rather than style for the sake of story. It adds unnecessary confusion to the first part of the film and detracts from the overall impact of a very well-written story.

Despite the confusion of the early scenes, a flow emerges and the film settles in to telling its story. The acting from all three leads is outstanding. Both Del Toro and Watts received Oscar nominations for their performances, Del Toro as a supporting actor for some reason. Penn probably would have gotten one too, but he was also in Mystic River in 2003, and that performance took the prize. I found Del Toro's performance to be the best of the three. He has the most difficult character. Cristina and Paul are fairly straightforward characters whose emotions and motivations we readily understand. Jack is a conflicted character trying to make something of his life while still possessing some of the character of the career con he was before finding Jesus. Del Toro's ability to balance these elements of his character, to make him sympathetic even after committing a truly horrendous act marks this as a masterful performance.

It has long been my theory that the end of a film can make or break it. For most of its run, Casablanca is a fairly ordinary, golden-age Hollywood film. Nothing classic or spectacular. Then it has one of the great all-time film endings, and it becomes a timeless classic. 21 Grams is an example of the converse. For most of the run, it is truly exceptional with sharp, realistic writing and superb acting. Then we get to the end. Typically in a story of guilt and pain, the climax would be of redemption and healing. Because that is what usually happens, I assume this is what is intended at the climax of this film. There are some quick shots of the three characters after the climactic events which suggest that at least two of them have put their lives back together and are moving on. But I see nothing cathartic about the events at the end of the film. (I cannot give details without giving too much away of the story.) I can understand Cristina moving on, but that is out of necessity, not healing. Both Jack and Paul are mysteries. I have no idea why Jack, after these events, emerges freed. I��rritu owes us and his characters more than this.

The early scenes are confusing but the main portion of the film is so good that we can forgive the director. But the ending is so disappointing that I am forced to knock one star off the rating.

Last updated 03/23/2004 09:59 AM