I Heart Huckabees
Albert Markovski (Jason Schwartzman), head of the Open Spaces Coalition, has been experiencing an alarming series of coincidences the meaning of which escapes him. With the help of two Existential Detectives, Bernard and Vivian Jaffe (Dustin Hoffman and Lily Tomlin), Albert examines his life, his relationships, and his conflict with Brad Stand (Jude Law), an executive climbing the corporate ladder at Huckabees, a popular chain of retail superstores.
When Brad also hires the detectives, they dig deep into his seemingly perfect life and his relationship with his spokesmodel girlfriend, the voice of Huckabees, Dawn Campbell (Naomi Watts). Albert pairs up with rebel firefighter Tommy Corn (Mark Wahlberg) to take matters into their own hands under the guidance of the Jaffes' nemesis, the French radical Caterine Vauban (Isabelle Huppert).
Member Reviews
All characters neurotic and annoying. - PatInTO
Could not stand this movie! I wanted to tie each character to a chair and repeatedly smack each one upside the head with a phone book- meek little whiners, all of them! Not at 250 char. yet, so.... did I mention I couldn't stand this movie? Wankers, lame-o's, crybabys, underachievers....couldn't get past 20 min of this drivel.Interesting acting, some interesting scenes - Moir
There was some very interesting acting in the film... and the possible premise seemed very interesting... but I did not feel it came off completely (as if one's good will had to sort of help it along too much and even then ......). The interesting question of 'Do what seem coincidences mean anything?' as well as a question that might follow, it seems to me,regarding this question {'if apparent coincidences mean anything, how much is it because of how the working of our minds, our psyches or whatever, are either reflected in what we perceive [[diagnosis by "coincidence as mental artefact" as it were]] or affected by how we use apparent coincidences, being drawn to the "fictions" they help us create... "fictions" that in turn help shape and focus our behaviour'}
I am not sure why it felt to me the film sort of 'collapsed' into flatness despite a feeling of potential depth, excitement, energy in places that seemed to me as if it went nowhere except to create some striking scenes where I could see some brilliantly talented and skilled actors (like Dustin Hoffman and Lily Tomlin as well as, for me to a somewhat lesser degree, some of the other very talented people in the film). Those moments alone were enough to make me feel the film was worth my 'price of admission'.
I think my conjectures regarding this question are not legitimate material to impose upon this review, but the fact the film stimulated what was for me interesting thinking reflects that for me it was a rather interesting failure, even though I felt it was to some degree a failure.Huckabees propelled by kooky vibe - Baboonvideo
Existential comedies – particularly those featuring big-name stars like Mark Wahlberg, Jude Law and Naomi Watts – are in extremely short supply. At the very least, then, writer-director David O. Russell (1999’s THREE KINGS) deserves credit for trying something very unique with I HEART HUCKABEES. Because of this, one is tempted to cut the film a little slack, even when the screenplay becomes a little too loose and smug for its own good.
Essentially a cinematic discussion between philosophy majors, I HEART HUCKABEES casts Jason Schwartzman as a frazzled environmentalist who hires a team of existential detectives (Lily Tomlin and Dustin Hoffman in a Sonny Bono-bowl cut) to help him determine the purpose of his life, an investigation that leads him to a firefighter (Wahlberg), a suit for a Wal-Mart-like retail chain (Law) and the suit’s model girlfriend (Watts), currently experiencing a crisis of conscience, all of whom unravel to a certain degree throughout the film.
Even if I HEART HUCKABEES ultimately doesn’t add up to anything (it is too caught up in itself to really make a point), Russell keeps things appropriately kooky, throwing enough odd characters and wacky scenes into the mix that it is fun to get caught up in the film’s weird vibe.
Member Reviews
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All characters neurotic and annoying. - PatInTO
Could not stand this movie! I wanted to tie each character to a chair and repeatedly smack each one upside the head with a phone book- meek little whiners, all of them! Not at 250 char. yet, so.... did I mention I couldn't stand this movie? Wankers, lame-o's, ...Interesting acting, some interesting scenes - Moir
There was some very interesting acting in the film... and the possible premise seemed very interesting... but I did not feel it came off completely (as if one's good will had to sort of help it along too much and even then ......). The interesting question ...Huckabees propelled by kooky vibe - Baboonvideo
Existential comedies – particularly those featuring big-name stars like Mark Wahlberg, Jude Law and Naomi Watts – are in extremely short supply. At the very least, then, writer-director David O. Russell (1999’s THREE KINGS) deserves credit for trying something ...