Release Date: October 1, 2004
Starring: Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, Mark Wahlberg, Naomi Watts, Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin, Isabelle Huppert
Directed by: David O. Russell
Written by: David O. Russell, Jeff Baena
Distributed by: Fox Searchlight Pictures
MPAA Rating: R (language, a sex scene)
Welcome to a world different from any you have ever lived in or dreamt of. If you thought you knew the meaning of life, think again.
I ♥ Huckabees, which was directed by David O. Russell and written by Russell and Jeff Baena, takes you into the existential minutiae of determining What It All Means -- breaking everything in your day-to-day life down to the smallest particle. It’s kind of an understatement to say that this is one of those thinking pictures; it is, rather, the kind of movie where you’ll do best to check your ideologies at the door. Bring your imagination instead.
I don’t mean to condescend. I, too, was left a little baffled by the goings-on in Huckabees; there’s a lot to take in, and this is definitely one of those films you have to see more than once. But if you’re confused, then you’ve only scratched the surface of what it's like to be Albert Markovski (Jason Schwartzman).
Albert is on a quest to find out What It All Means. He has hired two existential detectives, the husband-and-wife team of Bernard (Dustin Hoffman) and Vivian (Lily Tomlin), to follow him around wherever he goes and even to pick through his trash in order to discern the purpose of his existence.
Meanwhile, Albert has contracted himself out to the Huckabees Corporation, a chain of department stores. At one point, Albert was an environmental activist, out to save a swamp from getting bulldozed by a new Huckabees store. But he has since been persuaded by the handsome, devilish Brad Stand (Jude Law), who runs the marketing department for Huckabees and dates the company’s spokesmodel, Dawn Campbell (Naomi Watts), to relinquish control of the project. And he hates himself for it.
It turns out there are quite a few characters to keep track of -- in addition to those listed here, there is also a firefighter named Tommy Corn played by Mark Wahlberg, and a self-help guru named Caterine Vauban played by Isabelle Huppert in the mix -- and director Russell also wants to teach the viewer something about existentialism. Saying that there is a lot going on in I ♥ Huckabees doesn’t even begin to get at the movie’s true nature.
But Russell and Baena have created a lot of unique characters to pull off this story about realities within realities. As serious and sometimes intellectual as the material is, the cast keeps it loose and fun. We can all grasp the feeling of being the outcast, Albert, and facing the threat of someone smarter and more attractive, like Brad, for instance. Russell and Baena set up this perspective on What It All Means in a very constructive way.
One of the integral players in this process, and a driving force in the film, is Wahlberg -- an actor who, despite having played a plethora of forgettable roles, always manages to bounce back. In Huckabees, he does Tommy Corn, an insane firefighter, with an extraordinary amount of comedic enthusiasm -- the scene in which he goes ballistic at this conservative Christian family will probably have you rolling in the aisles.
Schwartzman, too, has re-established himself as an actor capable of some intriguingly quirky performances; this is his best since Rushmore. He carries the film well, even though he occasionally seems like an odd counterpart to Jude Law.
Russell’s visionary style deserves some attention, too. He figuratively and literally breaks down the picture, and he advances an interesting theory in which the world is a magic blanket, all made up of the same matter. Some philosophers, however, might take exception with that: It’s just as easy to say that the world, as it stands now, is far more egocentric, and that thinking outside the box is virtually impossible under those conditions. But I may not be giving Huckabees enough credit.
While its story may be all over the place and may also get too heavy for its own good, I ♥ Huckabees definitely provides an outlook on life worth taking into consideration. In this way it’s very similar to Russell’s previous films, like Three Kings and Flirting With Disaster, where an undeniable layer of truth lies within every wacky moment and unconventional character.
Oh, yeah, and this is one funny movie.
-- Michael J. Eiff (mjeiff@hotmail.com)