After watching Writer/Director Thomas McCarthy’s newest film, WIN WIN, I found myself cheering. I even contemplated, if only momentarily, signing up for a twitter account so that I could tweet my enthusiasm to the masses. So then, what’s it about? I find myself stumbling to provide a concise response. The film, like life, is hard to pin down. It presents the challenges of the everyday, in all its stress and struggle, with a lighthearted dash of humor.
Mike Flaherty (played by Paul Giamatti) lives in a small town in suburban New Jersey. He is married with two children. He is a lawyer working at his own, small, law firm. He attends church. He coaches the High School wrestling team that he himself once wrestled on. His best friend is the same best friend he has had since High School. But, get this. The tension of the film does not derive from his dissatisfaction with his wife, Jackie (played by Amy Ryan), his kids, or suburbia. Even New Jersey doesn’t bare the brunt of an assault. The mind-blowingly simple, yet surprising, answer? The tension of the film derives from the all too relatable reality of financial stress. Mike Flaherty is struggling, in the financial downturn, to support his family. Wait. It’s too boring, too real, you whine. Surely there must be a seedy affair involved? Well, sort of.
As his stress due to their financial instability heightens, he realizes that if he simply agrees to become the guardian of “Leo”(played by Oscar-nominated screen veteran Burt Young), a client of his who suffers from dementia, he can make an extra $1500 a month. Given Leo’s mental state, Mike takes advantage of the situation by putting him in an elderly care facility, against his client’s wishes, in order to lighten the load of his responsibilities as guardian. But, before Mike can make time to relay this decision to his wife, Kyle, a young kid running away from an unstable home (played by Alex Shaffer in his filmmaking debut) shows up looking for his grandfather, Leo.
The situation becomes more complicated than either Mike or Jackie anticipated and in the spur of the moment, they take Kyle into their home, allowing him to become a more permanent family fixture. In what appears to finally be a twist of fate, Kyle, among other things, is an Iowa-state wrestling champ. But just when it finally looks like a win-win situation (I’m sorry, I had to) for Mike and his long-suffering wrestling program, the boy’s mother shows up fresh from a drug rehabilitation center and threatens to expose Mike’s secret and derail his championship plans.
Amidst these twists and turns, McCarthy’s refreshing sense of humor routinely shines through. However, McCarthy’s humor is different than most in that he avoids the easy gag or a jab at the expense of another. This is surprisingly rare.
For example, the depth of relationship between Mike and his best friend Terry Delfino (played by actor Bobby Cannavale) is comfortably heart-warming, without being over done. McCarthy refreshingly avoids the contemporary comedy gimmick of homoeroticism between straight males, otherwise dubbed as “bro-mance.” And, without taking away from the camaraderie shared between Mike and Terry, McCarthy creates another likeable pairing in the relationship between Mike and Jackie. Get this: Mike and Jackie actually seem to genuinely enjoy and trust each other. Jackie is not insecure about Mike’s relationship with his “bros” and Mike doesn’t even seem to want a “Hall Pass”, so to speak.
But, fear not, McCarthy very delicately avoids the pitfalls of sentimentality. WIN WIN never feels like a chapter of Chicken Soup for the Movie Goers Soul. No. Instead, by dodging clichés and conventions, the reality of life, in all its mundane, banal hardship and ultimately– hilarity, unfolds. All of this is accomplished by delightful performances from a slew of terrific actors. Really, #goseeit.
Overall Rating: Two (big) buckets of popcorn, and a 4 out of 5 stars
