Take This Waltz: Catches What’s Inside

For years I have been angry at the French. They seem to make such perfect films. Everything is just right—the writing, the pacing, the unknown yet brilliant acting, they do it all. And despite the fact that this country is going to hell in a hand basket, I often yearned for something to rally behind. A solid film made in the good ol’ U S of A to rival those froggy perfectionists across the pond. And I thought I had found that film in Take This Waltz…until I found out that the genius writer/director behind this masterwork, Sarah Polley, is from freaking Canada! Foiled again! But at least I got the consolation prize of getting to see this gem of a film.

In it we meet Margot (Michelle Williams), an awkward, restless, charming woman who has an emptiness in her that is so big that you can feel it within your own soul when you watch her. We also meet Daniel (Luke Kirby), perhaps best described as a hipster rouge, but somehow in an earnest, sexy way. Then we discover that Daniel and Margot are neighbors. And that’s where the trouble starts, because Margot, despite her best efforts, is intrigued. She loves her husband Lou (Seth Rogan), who is wonderful, but Daniel is there just across the street as a constant temptation.

For parity’s sake we have Margot’s close friend and sister-in-law Geraldine (Sarah Silverman), who is a recovering alcoholic—themes of desire and restraint, and an uncertainty in maintaining “the right thing.” While this sounds like it might be too much of a “statement film” it actually isn’t. These concepts are explored without picking sides.

And the writing and acting are so good that they dovetail into something more profound than words. I would be hard pressed to name another film that so effectively utilized dialog to create an entire universe. Everything is said without being said or by saying something else: as an example, we see Margot and Lou express their adoration for each other by explaining all the gruesome ways they want to kill each other. It’s all done within the context of hipsterdom, and yet it draws you in beyond the initial eye roll. And soon these people are you and the people you know and you are just as upset and as thrilled and as worried about the future.

Because of the strong immersion in this sub-culture setting, it’s hard not to make parallels between this film and Diablo Cody’s Juno. But where that film was overly manufactured, this one feels organic and real despite all the ironic fashion and indie rock ballads.

This film is one to be studied, as it effortlessly flows while hitting each of the necessary points that all the screenwriting books tell us to include. And in the second half it skates backwards—revisiting earlier moments with a deeper perspective as time and events have inevitably moved the characters along.

In this film are layers of events that seem small and inconsequential, but they resonate against one another and become harmonizing influences that allow you to really feel the entirety of the whole story.

I have often heard script people talk about “tight” or “lean” scripts. And I think this is what they mean. Every aspect not only has to have a purpose for being there—it has to have 12 purposes. When a movie can make you feel the way that music can make you feel, that is when you know you’ve hit onto true artistry. The creator is somewhere behind the camera madly conducting away like a crazed and invisible Leonard Bernstein, and we can’t tell because we’re too busy being within their work.

Simply put, this is an excellent drama, even though it didn’t come from the home team. Hopefully we can match it at some point in the future…then again, maybe I should just start watching more Indies. If they are all as breathtaking as Take This Waltz, then I am 100% in.