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MOVIE - THE STATION AGENT - Review Rating $$$$$ $$$$1/2 (OUT OF 10)
A <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2003/12/25/top10MoviesOf2003.html">TOP 10 MOVIES OF 2003 SELECTION
STARRING - Peter Dinklage (Finbar McBride), Patricia Clarkson (Olivia Harris), Bobby Cannavale (Joe Oramas), Michelle Williams (Emily), Raven Goodwin (Cleo), Paul Benjamin (Henry Styles) & Joe Lo Truglio (Danny).
DIRECTOR/SCREENWRITER - Thomas McCarthy (Debut)
The Station Agent is a movie filled with truths, some humorous, some not so funny. The first truth the movie explores is the fact that we each gravitate to activities and/or groups where shared interests or circumstances provide an unspoken bond. Finbar's (Peter Dinklage) membership in the train club and subsequent befriending of Olivia (Clarkson) and Joe (Cannavale) are two examples of this phenomenon.
The second truth the movie conveys is that everything is relative. While the train club isn't exactly "hip", by today's cultural standards, its enthusiastic social outcasts differentiate among members as the larger society differentiates the group as a whole. The group's version of Cliff Claven (Cheers), who provides The Station Agent with a few great moments of humour, is held up to ridicule within the group. No matter our station in life our egos demand a basis upon which to feel superior. It's why the members of the jury on Survivor, who have lied and cheated, always accuse the remaining survivors of being bigger liars and cheaters.
The third truth superbly articulated in The Station Agent is that, for most of us, our circle of true friends is quite small and vulnerable to disruption. The friendships formed in the movie are among people who, for one reason or another, are otherwise without such companionship.
The new found friendships, in The Station Agent, form the basis of movie's fourth truth, no man or woman is an island. Despite Finbar's resolve to be left alone he can neither resist Joe's over exuberant overtures of friendship nor ignore Olivia's withdrawal from the group.
This need for acceptance is The Station Agent's final truth. Finbar's desire to be left alone has been fanned by the ridicule directed at him because of his stature. Olivia is similarly hiding from the pain of attachment lost. Joe, you'll see when you watch the film, is just Joe. His willingness to share Finbar's fascination in train watching is indicative of the depth of his need to feel wanted. The Station Agent uses humour and melancholy to make this point. This theme is echoed in the movie <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2004/01/31/movieMonsterReviewRatingou.htm l">
Monster, another of my <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2003/12/25/top10MoviesOf2003.html">
TOP 10 MOVIES OF 2003, though from a very different and darker perspective.
The humour in The Station Agent, which never goes for a cheap laugh, will have you rolling in the aisles at times. Though it's not billed as a comedy its much better than most of the recent films (<A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2003/10/21/movieIntolerableCrueltyout.htm l">
Intolerable Cruelty, <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2003/11/30/movieBadSantaReviewRatingo.htm l">
Bad Santa & <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2004/01/04/movieStuckOnYouReviewRatin.htm l">
Stuck On You) that claim to be comedies.
Most remarkable, perhaps, is that The Station Agent accomplishes its mission brilliantly in a scant 88 minutes. The Station Agent proves, like its main character, that length alone is an inadequate yardstick by which to take the measure of a man or a film.
The Academy, in its infinite wisdom, has overlooked this quality film. Searingly funny and heart wrenching, at the same time, The Station Agent is the story of three lonely people that shouldn't be missed.
Running time - 88 minutes
Check out my <A href="http://radio.weblogs.com/0108788/stories/2003/12/25/worstMoviesOf2003.html">WORST MOVIES OF 2003 list.
Alternative Reviews:
<A href="http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/2003/10/101710.html">
Roger Ebert's Review
<A href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/TheStationAgent-1126124/">
Rotten Tomatoes Reviews <A href="http://www.miramax.com/the_station_agent/">
The Station Agent Official Web Site
© Copyright 2005 David Schwartz.
Last update: 2/28/05; 1:48:20 AM.
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