Starring
Jake Gyllenhaal, Tatiana Maslany, Miranda Richardson, Richard Lane
Jr., Clancy Brown, Frankie Shaw, Jimmy LeBlanc. Directed by David
Gordon Green. (2017, 119 min).
I
suppose if one didn't appreciate the glossy, action-movie trappings
of last year's Patriot's Day, which a was semi-fictionalized
account of the hunt for the guys responsible for the Boston Marathon
bombing, Stronger might be more palatable. But despite a more intimate, personal story, it's little more than a checklist of inspirational movie tropes.
Jeff Bauman (Jake
Gyllenhaal) is a working Joe whose legs are blown off during the attack. Because he was able to identify one of the suspects, Jeff becomes a local
hero and minor celebrity. He doesn't really understand, or want, all
the attention and adulation, a feeling exacerbated by his alcoholic
mother (Miranda Richardson), who keeps pushing him into the
limelight.
 |
| Jeff chooses not inform the home crowd that he's actually a Rangers fan. |
For
much of the film, Jeff alternates between trying to adjust to a life
of limited mobility and angrily - often drunkenly - wallowing in
self-pity. There are times when only his on-again, off-again
girlfriend, Erin (Tatiana Maslany), seems committed to seeing Jeff walk
again. But even her resolve is often put to the test.
Stronger's
heart is in the right place and Gyllenhaal instills Jeff with a
simple likability that makes us empathize with him (even when he's
being kind of a dick). However, the film doesn't really have much to
say beyond what we've seen in countless other films where the
protagonist is forced to overcome tragedy. Furthermore, its main
character doesn't really engage in anything inspiring enough to make
a movie about.
The
performances are good and the story is presented with workmanlike
skill. But despite a few moments of emotional intensity - and a
stomach-churning flashback of the explosion's aftermath - Stronger
is curiously uninvolving. Ultimately, it's one of those movies we
respect more than enjoy.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
MAKING-OF
FEATURETTE: "Faith, Hope and Love: Becoming Stronger"
DIGITAL
COPY
KITTY CONSENSUS:
MEH...
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