Whenever Something’s Gotta Give comes up in conversation, my wife always mentions how great of a pair of actors Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton are. True, Nicholson built his career on role after iconic role and Keaton has been in her share of iconic movies, but now it seems they both are content to play what I like to call “The Old Person” role.
The two are paired up in the sort of romantic comedy that comes around every couple years or so that is marketed exclusively to the AARP set. While it is nice to see people old enough to run for president in a movie like this, my primary attraction to every seeing it revolved around all the awards it seemed to be getting nominated for during awards season. The DVD box touts Keaton’s Golden Globe and National Board of Review (now there’s a game changer) awards as well as her best actress Oscar nomination.
But what sort of character did she create to earn her accolades. Understandably, when I compared her to Tom Cruise, it launched an argument that my wife and I have had many times before about ‘What is acting?’ and, more specifically, ‘Is Tom Cruise and actor?’. I continually defend him; I think he’s good enough in any movie that requires the Tom Cruise persona (exception: Valkyrie, where a competent Cruise appeared without his persona).
But is there a Diane Keaton persona? If there is, it’s on display here as her confident-but-still-attractive-older-woman-type character crosses paths with Nicholson’s a freewheeling bachelor who likes his women like he likes his chickens: white meat, full breasts and nothing older than 25 years.
When dating Keaton’s daughter, Nicholson suffers a pre-sex heart attack and has to be rushed to the emergency room. Once there, two things are shown that I didn’t think I’d ever see: Jack Nicholson’s butt and Keanu Reeves as a doctor. What’s more, Reeves recognizes Keaton’s character as a famous playwright, begging the question, which is more implausible: Keanu Reeves the cardiologist or Keanu Reeves the theatre buff?
In typical movie-logic, Keaton is forced to care for Nicholson, who eventually changes from dirty old man to charming old man in 90 easy minutes, all from dating someone born during the Truman Administration.
One thing that is admirable about Something is it shows a main character actually doing their job. Keaton is pressured on getting pages written for a new play and what better way to ease writing block than to feature an all singing, all dancing chorus of Nicholson stand-ins wearing backless hospital gowns. More so than other movie featuring a writerly-type, Keaton’s character does log a substantial amount of screen time (i.e. more than a minute) in front of her laptop. Most movies have their characters state their profession outright (I’m a playwright! I’m a particle physicist! I’m a bearded lady at the sideshow!)
Most of the pleasure from Something comes from seeing two actors behave naturally enough that by the end you walk away not knowing the character’s names or what they do for a living, just that they fell in love at the end. Though, with the better part of a century’s worth of acting experience between the two of them, it’s not that much of a stretch to ask them to act a convincing conversation.
Decades from now, though, I’m sure that I’ll remember that Something’s Gotta Give was the Jack Nicholson movie featuring Amanda Peet in a black bikini.
Now there’s something the National Review Board missed.
Whenever Something’s Gotta Give comes up in conversation, my wife always mentions how great of a pair of actors Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton are. True, Nicholson built his career on role after iconic role and Keaton has been in her share of iconic movies, but now it seems they both are content to play what I like to call “The Old Person” role.
The two are paired up in the sort of romantic comedy that comes around every couple years or so that is marketed exclusively to the AARP set. While it is nice to see people old enough to run for president in a movie like this, my primary attraction to every seeing it revolved around all the awards it seemed to be getting nominated for during awards season. The DVD box touts Keaton’s Golden Globe and National Board of Review (now there’s a game changer) awards as well as her best actress Oscar nomination.
But what sort of character did she create to earn her accolades. Understandably, when I compared her to Tom Cruise, it launched an argument that my wife and I have had many times before about ‘What is acting?’ and, more specifically, ‘Is Tom Cruise and actor?’. I continually defend him; I think he’s good enough in any movie that requires the Tom Cruise persona (exception: Valkyrie, where a competent Cruise appeared without his persona).
But is there a Diane Keaton persona? If there is, it’s on display here as her confident-but-still-attractive-older-woman-type character crosses paths with Nicholson’s a freewheeling bachelor who likes his women like he likes his chickens: white meat, full breasts and nothing older than 25 years.
When dating Keaton’s daughter, Nicholson suffers a pre-sex heart attack and has to be rushed to the emergency room. Once there, two things are shown that I didn’t think I’d ever see: Jack Nicholson’s butt and Keanu Reeves as a doctor. What’s more, Reeves recognizes Keaton’s character as a famous playwright, begging the question, which is more implausible: Keanu Reeves the cardiologist or Keanu Reeves the theatre buff?
In typical movie-logic, Keaton is forced to care for Nicholson, who eventually changes from dirty old man to charming old man in 90 easy minutes, all from dating someone born during the Truman Administration.
One thing that is admirable about Something is it shows a main character actually doing their job. Keaton is pressured on getting pages written for a new play and what better way to ease writing block than to feature an all singing, all dancing chorus of Nicholson stand-ins wearing backless hospital gowns. More so than other movie featuring a writerly-type, Keaton’s character does log a substantial amount of screen time (i.e. more than a minute) in front of her laptop. Most movies have their characters state their profession outright (I’m a playwright! I’m a particle physicist! I’m a bearded lady at the sideshow!)
Most of the pleasure from Something comes from seeing two actors behave naturally enough that by the end you walk away not knowing the character’s names or what they do for a living, just that they fell in love at the end. Though, with the better part of a century’s worth of acting experience between the two of them, it’s not that much of a stretch to ask them to act a convincing conversation.
Decades from now, though, I’m sure that I’ll remember that Something’s Gotta Give was the Jack Nicholson movie featuring Amanda Peet in a black bikini.
Now there’s something the National Review Board missed.
