Being funny on the screen seems effortless to Kristen Wiig. Her comedic clowning skills are on a par with Lucille Ball and Shelly Long. Sincerity, however, doesn't come as easily — especially when her character is plain and charmless.
HATESHIP LOVESHIP sat on the Thriftway DVD rental shelf for several weeks. I took note of its great cast: Wiig, supported by Guy Pierce, Nick Nolte, Hailee Steinfeld, Christine Lahti, and Jennifer Jason Leigh. What could go wrong there? My memories of GIRL MOST LIKELY (which was supposed to be a comedy, but whiffed miserably) prevented me from taking the chance. Wiig's performance as said GIRL lacked any charm whatsoever; she was drab, homely, and totally unappealing. So, what was she going to do with this, her first dramatic role? It didn't look promising at all.
Finally, I took HATESHIP LOVESHIP home. And, I'm so very glad I did. What a splendid collaboration between star, cast, screenwriter, director and crew in this adaptation of Alice Munro's short story. Ain't no heroes here. These are real, extremely flawed human beings. They might live next door to anyone. They might be anyone.
Wiig's Johanna is a caretaker. That's what makes her life make sense. And, that's her odd beauty. She also finds herself attracted to bad boy Ken (Pierce) a drug-addicted user with delusions of accomplishing something that will finally give him independence.
But no one in this story seems to feel entitled to anything. They've all been wounded. So they protect themselves.
No one is hanging from a cliff. No clock is ticking. No fuse is burning down. Yet, somehow watching Johanna scrub a long-neglected bathtub filled me with worry, hoping she wasn't setting herself up for disaster.
The sex scenes, while not showing any nudity, are luscious and beautiful. I hope to see more of Liza Johnson. She is one gifted and inspired director.
Yeah, maybe Ken will never change. But it won't be for Johanna's lack of patience, and devotion. The story leaves us rootin' for the dude — and loving her. The doormat has won his respect and admiration. And ours. She deserves it.
