THE WAY BACK (2020) – Review

Maybe that Shakespeare guy was on to something. That line about “All the world’s a stage” in particular. Then everyone’s life or “story” could be that a play, or a piece of theatre. This may account for the popular phrase about folks in the news when they burn brightly in the limelight of fame, then the glow around them dims, often amping back up as pundits relate the story of someone’s “second act”. But that might apply to most everyday people if they’re fortunate. And what if we’re not limited to two acts, but a never-ending series of such life changes? That’s the main theme of the new drama hitting the multiplexes, and it might very well pertain to its lead. The setting is the world of amateur sports and that one guy who’s far beyond his “golden days” as a “phenom”. His life’s now on the skids, and, out of the blue, his old passion provides a lifeline as the waters of depression and rage that engulf him. The question for him is whether this revisiting of his youth will show him THE WAY BACK.

The man in question is Jack Cunningham (Ben Affleck), a burly 40-something construction worker who’s drifting through life in a fog of booze and regrets. Separated from his wife Angela (Janina Gavankar), he spends his days on the “worksite” slurping “spiked” coffee, and his nights getting “blackout ” drunk in a seedy neighborhood “watering hole” or in his squalid walk-up apartment. Thanksgiving with the family provides little relief as his sister Beth (Michaela Watkins) chides him for his drinking, and his stagnant lifestyle (not returning calls from his soon-to-be-ex). Then one message on his voicemail stuns Jack. It’s the priest who ran the high school where Jack played basketball (twenty-five years ago he was the local star athlete). He cleans himself up and goes down to Bishop Hayes to meet his old “padre”. Seems that they need a new basketball coach since a heart attack has put the current one on the “bench”. After much soul searching (over a case of beer), Jack decides to give it a try. He meets with assistant coach Dan (Al Madrigal), who has too much on his “plate” at home to take over the position. The “ragtag” squad has few members and lacks height and a real dedication to the sport, with far too many “showboats” with little skill. But Jack sees the raw talent that he can mold and shape. He’s a tough taskmaster, but come game time an inner fire ignites the old passion. More importantly, the new after-hours gig seems to keep him sober. His efforts begin to lessen the point gap at games, with the team on a “roll”. Ah but Angela and their tragic past catch up to him. Will that old “darkness” derail this new chance at life? Or will the respect of his “boys” pull him back from the depths of despair?

The film works due to the compelling performance of Affleck, who is on screen for nearly all of its nearly two-hour running time. He seems to have found a way to channel his very public struggles (his tabloid exploits were getting more attention than his films for a time) into one of his best screen roles in years. Jack is a self-medicating bear of a man, trying to hide away from anyone, his family, his wife, who enters his “cave”. Through Affleck’s sunken dark eyes we see that Jack has truly “disconnected”, even lashing out at all who would try and throw him a rescue rope. But we see how the game pulls him back in. With his body language, from lumbering and “hunched-over” to head held high as he strides on the court, Affleck conveys the new sense of purpose that has jolted Jack back to life. He also begins to engage with others, becoming a passionate mentor (complete with colorful language) to the young men in his charge. This builds into a most heart-wrenching, but honest climax. It’s a career-high for this talented artist (hopefully we’ll see another directing effort soon). He gets surprisingly strong support from two actors with roots in TV comedy. Perhaps best known for his stint as a “Daily Show” reporter (along with stand-up comedy), Madrigal takes what could be a one-note goofy side-kick, the nerd who wants to be a jock, and infuses him with a real confident spirit, looking up to Jack but not letting him s”slide by” on his gifts, always doing the “right thing”. A single season on SNL was the springboard to a busy career for Watkins, shifting from TV comedies (superb work on Hulu’s “Casual”) to “indie” comedies like last year’s BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON and SWORD OF TRUST. Now she shows us her dramatic “chops” in a great turn as Jack’s unfiltered, no “B.S.” sister who adores him, but who also won’t give him a “pass”, her haunted eyes hinting at the years of worry and betrayal. the same could be said of Gavankar as estranged wife Angela who shares Jack’s trauma but pushes aside her pain to try and help the man she once adored. There’s also some impressive work from several young actors as the players, including Da’Vinchi as the reserved but gifted Devon, Melvin Gregg as the arrogant Marcus who gets a much needed “humbling”, and Will Ropp as the very funny, motor-mouthed “playa'” Kenny.

Director Gavin O’Connor has crafted a character study set in the sports world that avoids the usual cliches of the sports flick genre. The script he co-wrote with Brad Ingelsby has its greatest emotional heft off the court and away from the locker run. A montage of each game conveys all that’s needed with a fast freeze-frame relaying the final score before moving on (though they start to win, Jack doesn’t seem much happier than the defeats). Ther’s no uplifting, bombastic music score during the final game seconds, but rather the lone, subtle piano tinkling from Rob Simonsen’s sparse soundtrack. That section of the script, the “team-building” sequences are the only time when the solid script loses a bit of its focus. That’s when Jack appears to have gone “cold turkey” (Dan does chide him for some “empties” he saw in his office), but with little of the realistic consequences. Sure, we don’t need a repeat of Ray Milland’s “DT” hysterics from THE LOST WEEKEND, but Jack would be showing more of the “detox’ effects, considering we see him “killing a case” during the course of one evening. Luckily the story gets back on track for the last act as life delivers a cruel reminder to Jack, one that the game can’t erase. That’s when he must decide to “save himself” as the usual final game “fade-out’ is replaced by a quiet promise of hope and redemption. And kudos for the honest depiction of the dismal “bar life’. In recent years, TV has somewhat romanticized the corner pub as a frequent sitcom setting from “Cheers” to “How I Met Your Mother” making them cozy, well-lit backdrops for witty banter and lovable eccentrics. This film’s “dive”, Harold’s Place, is a dark, dank den of misery, with regulars staggering out to do damage in the dawn’s new light. Not quite Hell, but not much like the clean bright “watering holes” we usually see. THE WAY BACK is a gripping drama that takes some offbeat chances, ones that pay off thanks to the great cast lead by a re-invigorated Affleck.

3 out of 4