By: debbie lynn elias
I have long admired the talent and performances of Frank Langella but never moreso than now. As 70 year old novelist Leonard Schiller, Langella lifts the already superlative emotion generated by novelist Brian Morton’s Pen/Faulkner award-nominated novel STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING to ethereal heights. With eloquence and simplistic beauty, his singular performance touched my heart so, so as to move me to tears.
It is the twilight, if not evening, of life for Leonard Schiller. A best selling author, he has labored for the past ten years trying to complete yet a fifth and probably final novel, hoping for just one more glimpse of his youth, of a day in the sun. Tall and proud, his every movement speaks refinement, class, intelligence and dignity. Quiet, imploded and terribly contained, he is very proper. Rising early each morning he dresses with care in a suit and tie, even though he knows he will only be sitting in his library struggling to find the next word or next chapter with his old Underwood manual typewriter. Living in a labrynthine New York apartment, he has become somewhat of a recluse. Cloistered amongst his thousands of books, cherished printed words clearly give him comfort and the familiarity of a time long ago and days gone by; a time when reading and writing were fundamental and it was unthinkable that the day might come when people no longer read or books were no longer printed. Content with himself and his world after the “loss” of his wife and himself suffering a major heart attack, Leonard’s only contact with the outside comes through his 40 year old daughter Ariel. Herself alone and unsure of who she is or what she will become, she dotes on her father, yet her one desire is to have a child, with or without a man in her life.
Heather Wolfe is an ambitious young grad student who is obsessed with Leonard’s early work….and she has gotten wind that he may be working on yet a new novel after so many years. Intent on using Leonard and his works as the basis for her Master’s thesis, Heather invites herself into Leonard’s life by sending him a note expressing her interest and need for his assistance. An intensely private and personal man, Leonard declines her request for help arguing his need for quiet and routine while writing his novel. Undeterred, Heather, first looks to Ariel for allegiance telling her that she (Heather) will “reintroduce your father’s work to the world.” But then, looking and acting every bit the little trollop that we as the audience may believe her to be, uses all her “charms” to gain Leonard’s attention. With everything from fish-net stockings, spilling tea on herself, the old “I feel a little faint” routine, and fawning, fawning, fawning over him like he is a demi-God or a rock star, her patronizing manner while sickening, is heartwarming to an old man who has missed out on life for so many years.
Leonard, with visible trepidation, slowly warms to Heather, and surprisingly, it appears this 20-something ingenue may have some real feelings for him. With careful deliberateness and increasing enthusiasm, Leonard shares not only his mind, but his passion for work and his unspoken passion for the touch of another human being, of a woman.
In the meantime, Ariel’s world is turned upside down when her former boyfriend Casey returns to town hoping to reunite with her and this time for good. Unfortunately, Casey doesn’t want children, a fact made clear years ago when Ariel was pregnant and the baby lost. And Leonard, wanting to protect his daughter, doesn’t want to see her make another mistake with a man who he believes is not the man for her.
Watching these four individuals, we are privy to their innermost thoughts and feelings as their lives unfold, true alliances are shown, and as Leonard has long held as the theme of his earlier works, struggles, as life is not designed for our comfort but for our struggle, for in struggle only then do we find growth.
This is Frank Langella’s Academy Award. Best known for his work on Broadway as the sexiest Dracula alive, he has long been held in the hearts and fantasies of women the world over with love and lust. However, despite that (and ladies, let me tell you, the man is as sexy now as he ever was), and other award winning roles, as Leonard Schiller, this is the single best performance not only of his career, but of the year by anyone, bar none. With Leonard, Langella himself admitted to a freedom to just “sit and be as Leonard is a man who doesn’t express himself.” Drawn to all of his projects because of the script, this was no different. “The words, the beautiful words. I kept turning the pages.” With a minimalist approach, so much of Leonard is conveyed through Langella’s eyes; so expressive with determined sadness. An intensely emotionally complex role, Langella presents a petrified body that is staid, stoic and rigid yet is so commanding and unyielding in the face of life and death, that your heart aches for the character. And did I mention, Langella has a nude scene? Oh yes!! At age 69 I’ll put him against 35-40 year old guy out there.
Lauren Ambrose has the daunting task of going toe-to-toe with Langella. As Heather, she is a dichotomous presence that borders on cruel, to the point that you want to slap her and toss her out of Leonard’s life yourself. Superb performance. As for Lili Taylor, this is probably one the most sedate and grounded in her career. According to Langella, “Lili Taylor is the best thing that ever walked this earth”, describing her as “exuding a passionate graciousness” which is the very essence of Ariel. Long a favorite of mine is Adrian Lester. As Casey, his character is actually more in step with Leonard than either would care to admit and with the same ease and gentility that he displayed as Henry in “Primary Colors”, Lester adds a warmth to the film’s dynamic.
Written and directed by Andrew Wagner, the script is smart, clever, intricately interwoven as if a layered canvas, with sharp snappy dialogue that affords great commentary without being commentating. Character driven with cerebral literacy, this is a carefully stylized observational work that allows the characters and situations to speak to your mind and your heart. Although shot in a mere 18 days, the actors spent months preparing with Wagner and each other in order to attain the level of intimacy required of the piece. Particularly effective is the softness of Harlan Bosmajian’s cinematography complimenting the warmth of the Carol Strober’s production design.
Grace. Sophistication. Intelligence. Heart. We should all be so fortunate to be STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING of our own lives.
Leonard Schiller – Frank Langella Heather Wolfe – Lauren Ambrose Ariel Schiller – Lili Taylor Casey – Adrian Lester
Written and directed by Andrew Wagner based on the novel by Brian Morton. Rated PG-13. (111 min)
