Will Ferrell gives his best performance to date in the small dramedy Everything Must Go, and it’s clear that he’s the best thing about it. The film overall is good, but he’s rather excellent and worth keeping in mind for awards consideration. As a man struggling with the worst days of his life, Ferrell is pitch-perfect, disappearing into the role with aplomb. Writer/director Dan Rush is someone to watch as well, though he ultimately seems content to just let Ferrell continually wow the audience. Even though it chooses a strange path at times, the flick is a simple story at its core, and I enjoyed it quite a bit.
Nick Halsey (Ferrell) has always had a drinking problem, but he’s always been able to sober up and get with the program (literally) when anything of note has been at stake. His latest slip-up however, is about to destroy his life. While on a business trip in Denver, he fell off the wagon and caused some trouble for the company he’s mid-level management at. Soon, he’s lost his job and started drinking heavily again. He then comes home to find that his wife has left him, changed the locks, and discarded all of his worldly possessions on the front lawn. Nick has hit rock bottom, and just decides to camp out on his lawn. At the same time, a pregnant newlywed named Samantha (Rebecca Hall) has just moved in across the street, and they begin to bond. When his AA sponsor, a detective named Frank Garcia (Michael Pena) informs him that he can only stay on his lawn for 5 days, and only if it’s while holding a yard sale, he employs the help of a neighborhood kid (Christopher Jordan Wallace) to get the sale going. For Nick, moving on will entail letting go, in more ways than one. Read more on Everything Must Go (***)…
I normally don’t make personal recommendations to films I haven’t seen yet, but this is a special exception. Kristin Wiig is, in my (and many others’) opinion, one of the most talented comediennes to come around in a long time. Contributing a number of small but hilarious supporting performances in films like Knocked Up and Walk Hard, she finally has a film of her own, and managed to gather an impressive ensemble of other funny women for the Judd Apatow-produced Bridesmaids. It’s no secret that Hollywood rarely allows actresses to carry comedies, or even allow them to play comedic characters. If this film isn’t successful they may never take that risk again for a very long time. If my pleas aren’t enough to convince you, most critics also recommend the film, calling it an imperfect but frequently hilarious showcase for its talented star. The online buzz and early ticket sales are pretty good, so I don’t think I’m engaging in too much wishful thinking by pegging it to earn $18-23 million in its opening and having strong box office “legs” throughout the summer.
