Somewhere (2010)

Oh, Sofia Coppola. Looks like you've made another movie about privileged white people with feelings of emptiness and isolation. InSomewhere, Stephen Dorff stars as Johnny Marco, a popular action star who spends most of his time drinking, fucking hot women, and sitting around doing nothing. The few times he isn't doing one of those things, he's working on a new movie or spending time with his preteen daughter, Cleo (Elle Fanning). When her mother decides to take some "personal time" off, Cleo stays with her father for longer than he's accustomed. The two play video games, travel to Italy to promote his movie, and eat a lot of food. Johnny begins to consider some lifestyle adjustment while Cleo agonizes over her mother's unexplained departure.

I'm of two minds on this one. Yes, this is certainly more of the same from Coppola. Rich white people have problems, boo hoo, and nothing really happens. It's fairly self-indulgent. But at the same time, she is so darned good at doing it, I can't fault her too much for playing to her strengths. She gets interesting, understated performances from Dorff and Fanning. She sets up these beautiful, quiet shots and does wonders with a still camera. She doesn't so much tell a story as she does capture a series of moments in Johnny's banal and gradually self-aware existence.

The thing about Somewhere is that it feels rather pointless. Like its title it is ambiguous, short, and searching, but it never really goes anywhere. There isn't much character development, save for a few small moments at the end with Dorff questioning his purpose. I think it was meant to be more introspective, but it comes off as too sparse and removed. There isn't much resolution, and that's ok, but there's a prevailing sense ofblankness to the film that will likely leave many viewers unsatisfied. For the most part I liked it, mainly for the strong performances and gorgeous cinematography, but it just needed... more. I think had I been in a different mood I might have hated it, but at the time it made for a nice viewing. Then again as a hip, privileged white person, I guess I'm the target audience.

I imagine Coppola's very specific approach is wearing thin on many viewers. I'll wait and see what happens next time.