Review: Solitary Man

Review: Solitary Man

Rating: **1/2

Nonna's Rating: $$

Rotten Tomatoes: 83%

I've now seen Solitary Man, A Serious Man, and A Single Man. Serious, the Coen Brothers' take on Job is, by far, the best. Single, with Colin Firth, is a solid second. Solitary, at third, opens promisingly with a great Johnny Cash cover of the Neil Diamond tune of the same name, but tells a story we've just seen too many times before.

Michael Douglas plays the role of a manipulative cad extremely well -- after all, he's done it in several films. His strong performance, however, makes the movie watchable, but, all too soon, we realize what an old story we're watching-- a man going through a post-mid-life crisis, deeply in denial, and hurting too many people along the way. Douglas' character has no idea what it takes to maintain a relationship. He rides roughshod over everyone -- casual lovers, patient ex-wives, shell-shocked children, and old friends. That some continue to love him is amazing and, at times, a bit unbelievable.

I'm looking forward to the Wall Street sequel. Gordon Gekko -- now that's a character.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price
$$= Worth a rental
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it