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"Hey, Baby, I was Just Wondering ... is Your Fiancé's Corpse Cold Yet?"

Catch and Release / John Williams

The first strike against Catch and Release is that it concerns itself with a romance between grown people called Gray and Fritz, names that should exist only if you feel some twisted need to make up backstories for the models in your L.L. Bean catalog. The second strike is that, despite being set in pristine Colorado and featuring mostly characters who are decent in their way, Fritz is played by Timothy Olyphant, who always comes across like the guy who first tempts “hayseed Axl” when he gets off the bus to start the “Welcome to the Jungle” video. Olyphant has frequently and quite convincingly played sleazy types, and here he enters into a passionate relationship with Gray (Jennifer Garner) after her fiancé, Grady, a friend of his, dies. On paper, this role calls for someone much more likable than Olyphant if it’s going to be brought off.

The third strike, judging from the preview, would be everything else.

But miraculously, despite its numerous red flags, Catch and Release more or less lives up to its title. Sure, it hooks you in a way that makes you bleed all over and scream for mercy, and there are moments when you feel sure the encounter will leave you dead, but as the credits roll, you walk away feeling mostly unscathed and relieved.

Don’t get me wrong, the movie fails to achieve its most basic goal, which is romantic resonance. It cheaply lessens the creepiness of the hey-the-body’s-not-cold-yet love affair by making the dead guy less sympathetic — we learn early on that the recently deceased Grady had been secretly sending money to a masseuse in Los Angeles (Juliette Lewis), and may have had a child with her after he and Gray were already dating. As for Olyphant, he’s better than I expected he would be, but he’s helpless to change the fact that Fritz is a character whose idea of enhancing postcoital bliss is drawing a dragon on Gray’s hand with a Sharpie. Gross. And given the sad premise, Catch and Release doesn’t go for the pathos jugular quite like it might have. I suppose it makes a couple of half-hearted attempts. Had it been set in the Rust Belt, though — or hell, even Colorado sometime other than dazzling summer — it might have featured some appropriately depressing moments, some real grief, but there’s no room for that in the movie’s sun-dappled, mountain-shaded heart.

Still, because the silly sum of the project is made from some worthwhile parts, the experience is much less agonizing than it initially promises to be. You’re surprised to find your bile simmering instead of boiling because there are just enough good elements to keep things watchable. If you want a comfortably familiar sitcom, there’s the character of Sam, a close friend of Grady’s played by Kevin Smith. Listening to him crack wise for the movie’s first 20 minutes (“What are you, an osteopath?”) is like stumbling on a long-lost audition reel for the role of Chandler Bing. Eventually, the big bearded lug settles into an enjoyable comfort zone, only stumbling in a moment or two when the script asks him to actually emote.

Did you enjoy Kicking and Screaming (the real one, not the Will Ferrell one)? I did. A lot. And like Noah Baumbach’s debut, Catch and Release features a small group of mostly aimless, emotionally immature young men sharing a house. Perhaps you can’t get enough of ditzy, New-Agey stereotypes. Here, Juliette Lewis somehow breathes fresh(ish) life into that old caricature. Like The Big Chill, the movie’s action is set in motion by a dead person who we never really see (outside a blurry photo or two). I was half hoping the credits would acknowledge the similarity and list Kevin Costner as Grady, but no luck. If you want A River Runs Through It, well, a river runs right through this puppy.

Perhaps the most admirable aspect of the movie is that it doesn’t come off as a shameless vehicle to showcase Garner. Writer and first-time feature director Susannah Grant, who penned In Her Shoes and Erin Brockovich, among others, has her heart in the right place. She clearly wants the story to function as an ensemble piece, despite the unavoidable tendency of Garner’s cheekbones to steal scenes. And when Garner is the focus, she’s not bad, a bit too doe-eyed and pouty at rest (though that’s just how God made her) but convincingly naturalistic when she springs into action.

I’m a sucker for movies that end with a character hitting the road for some better, or at least significantly different, life. I saw Good Will Hunting multiple times in the theater partly just to reach that last shot of him beginning his cross-country drive to the strains of Elliott Smith. And sure, when Gray reaches for her seatbelt near the end of Catch and Release, it’s only for a relatively short trip set to one of my least favorite Death Cab for Cutie songs, but I have to admit, the freedom and hopefulness of the moment got to me on some minor level. The movie couldn’t end there, though, because then it would miss one last remix opportunity — a Shawshank-like ending on a beach.

In the end, neither these cinematic allusions (some of which I freely admit stretching to find) nor the moments of wider cast chemistry can keep Catch and Release from being what it is: a date movie. But if you need a mainstream date movie and you normally dread them, this is the pick. You’ll survive. And if that sounds like half-hearted praise, then you haven’t seen The Break-Up, Failure to Launch, or Just Like Heaven. If you have seen them, then you know that “you’ll survive” is a rave.

John Williams lives in Brooklyn. He’s an editor at Harper Perennial and a freelance writer. He blogs at A Special Way of Being Afraid.


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Comments

"The first strike against Catch and Release is that it concerns itself with a romance between grown people called Gray and Fritz, names that should exist only if you feel some twisted need to make up backstories for the models in your L.L. Bean catalog."

Ha, comedy gold!

Anyway, when this flick comes across any of my screens in a manner that doesn't cost me anything I will see it just for Juliette and Kevin.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at January 28, 2007 7:55 PM

I realized this movie sucked when the fire alarm went off after about 60 minutes and I had no desire to sit and rewatch the first half again. You listed two very big problems I had: the setting and Olyphant. He can't act. He constantly looked as if he was slightly surprised to have gotten cast in this film opposite Garner. And the beautiful Colorado setting made me ill. It didn't rain once. What's a movie about grief when it looks like perpetual J Crewville?

Posted by: Rachael at January 28, 2007 9:19 PM

"I'm a sucker for movies that end with a character hitting the road for some better, or at least significantly different, life."

Oh, you must *love* the Kaurismaki brothers...

Posted by: Spongie at January 28, 2007 9:49 PM

LOL, Rachael, I love the perpetual J Crewsville comment, it totally nails the feeling from the previews I saw!
Grey, Grady, and Fritz...egads.
I don't think I'll be seeing this movie, it seems really boring, with a lot of nice, placid scenery and pseudo reflective scenes.

Posted by: zadzi at January 29, 2007 12:39 AM

I have to know, John...which Death Cab song did they use? :)

Posted by: Lacey at January 29, 2007 1:22 AM

For a site where people normally drool all over Deadwood, I'm surprised at the hate for Timothy Olyphant. I've always liked him since Advice From a Caterpillar, where his performance is the only thing worth watching. And he was pretty awesome as Tongue-Ring Boy in Sex and the City.

Posted by: AM at January 29, 2007 8:24 AM

"I'm surprised at the hate for Timothy Olyphant"

He has two things going for him in my mind: 'Go' and .. he's pretty.

Posted by: Mara at January 29, 2007 8:40 AM

Lacey, it was "Soul Meets Body." It's not terrible, but it doesn't do much for me.

And as long as I'm here -- AM, I don't hate Olyphant. I just feared he was miscast.

Posted by: JMW at January 29, 2007 9:19 AM

The only time that I remember Timothy Olyphant is from Broken Hearts Club. So him getting the girl is a little odd to me.

Posted by: anikitty at January 29, 2007 9:49 AM

Fair enough.

Posted by: AM at January 29, 2007 10:22 AM

I actually think Olyphant is a seriously underused talent. I liked him in Go, and he's the best part of The Girl Next Door. And he rocks in Deadwood. So I'm glad to see him stretching out, albeit not much. He deserves more parts. And I don't mean adaptations of video games about hit men.

Posted by: TK at January 29, 2007 2:03 PM

totally curious...which Death Cab song do they use at the end of the movie??? i haaaaaate it when their music gets used in movies!

Posted by: JB at January 29, 2007 3:20 PM

ahhh ignore the last comment...saw the answer above.
stupid me!

Posted by: JB at January 29, 2007 3:22 PM

I'm sorry Kevin Smith isn't allowed to have speaking roles. it's just wrong. I saw the trailer for this, and seeing Silent Bob speak was just too much.

Posted by: Peter at January 30, 2007 11:15 AM

I'm also a sucker for movies that end with the protagonist driving away to seek a better life. For me, it all started with Harold & Maude, and in 35 years nothing else has come close to that final scene on the hilltop. I have a feeling this movie won't come close either, but it's good to hear that it wasn't a *total* piece of crap!

Posted by: JoGirl at January 30, 2007 4:15 PM

Since I now live in Singapore and probably won't even be able to see this movie for 6 months (and then it will be censored), I'll just focus on one thing: your comments about Colorado. Have you ever been there outside of ski season? The sun shines there over 300 days a year! If your knowledge of Colorado weather comes from South Park (gray construction paper) and January weather at 11,000 feet, you might have missed this. So although the weather may not be right for the film, it it is the "real" Colorado.

Posted by: Greg at January 30, 2007 7:53 PM

Fuck this movie. I saw two seconds of the trailer and knew it was utter shit.

Posted by: Anastasia at January 30, 2007 10:57 PM

i saw this disaster at the screening, like some months ago.. it sucked then and can imagine theres still suckage now. but during the screening, i was positive that jennifer garners pregnancy was extremely visible and even worse distracting. they kept covering it up with big black dresses and large purses. i was so upset about it that i wrote it down on those little comment cards they give you after the movie. i was wondering if they edited her belly out.

Posted by: boo at January 30, 2007 11:54 PM

"If your knowledge of Colorado weather comes from South Park (gray construction paper)".....

WHAT are you talking about? South Park is my FAVE Reality TV Show. Wow, I love Kenny. How does he keep managing to shuffle back onto this mortal coil? He has the craziest luck, huh? HUH? RIGHT?

Posted by: She-Wolf of the Dirty South at January 31, 2007 8:26 AM

Greg, I agree with your comment about Colorado's weather. It really is always that sunny and gorgeous here. Granted, right now everything is covered in melting, dirty slush, but that will go away soon. I hope.

And Peter, I swear everyone who makes that "Silent Bob shouldn't speak" joke has never actually seen a Kevin Smith film. Silent Bob always has the best lines!

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Posted by: casino games at February 14, 2007 11:09 PM

ok you cn make fun of any movie you want, but when it comes to timothy olyphant shut your f***ing mouth. he is the most talented actor ever he can pull off anything. so before you put in another negitive comment about him, think about this.... could i do anything timothy olyphant can do? if your answer is yes your retarted!!!!!! to be entiarly honest no ones better than him. in fact he deserves to be on a friggin throne.

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Posted by: Cox at May 17, 2007 9:10 AM

I needed a mental break, and I thought: this movie will probably be as stupid and awful as "Because I Said So," but it will be harmless and mindless, and that's what I need. It will be a chick movie aka "a date movie" with a cornball theme. It was better than I expected. Perhaps the key to happiness at the movies is low expectations? Like "The Big Chill" for 20-somethings, its flirt with tension kept it from being syrupy. Despite the stupid ending and ridiculous subplot with the mother of the dead boyfriend, and the implausibility of anyone being interested in the Jennifer Garner character, I kinda liked it. This is not to say it's good, but it wasn't bad.

Posted by: bluebird at June 24, 2007 12:49 AM

Wow, I'm a little disappointed in Pajiba. I saw this movie over the weekend and was stunned by how bad it was. None of the characters were believable as human beings, Jennifer Garner's lips looked like they were about to explode from all the collagen, I didn't give a shit about any of the characters, and the random suicide attempt? Bleah. It sucked.

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