Jersey Boys (2014)

Released:  June 20th, 2014

Rated:  R

Studio:  Warner Bros.

Starring:  John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Michael Lomenda, Vincent Piazza, Christopher Walken

Directed by:  Clint Eastwood 

Written by:  Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice

Personal Bias Alert:  Didn’t see the musical, never heard of The Four Seasons

4.7 of 10

            Any discussion of American cinema in the last 60 years would be incomplete without mentioning Clint Eastwood.  He’s played such a prominent role and outlasted so many others that he has ingrained himself into the very idea of American cinema.  With roles like the Man with No Name and Harry Callahan, Clint’s the only man who could arguably equal John Wayne’s iconic portrait of masculinity.  Then again, he’s never shied away from prominent, strong roles for women, either.  His directorial efforts include “Sudden Impact,” “The Bridges of Madison County,” “Million Dollar Baby,” and “Changeling,” starring Sondra Locke, Meryl Streep, Hilary Swank, and Angelina Jolie respectively.  His work has touched upon nearly all genres of film, earned millions of dollars, and won nearly every award imaginable.  That he’s still making movies, and still pushing himself in new directions, is a reward to film lovers everywhere.

            Now Clint’s made a musical before.  He stared in 1969’s “Paint Your Wagon,” but hasn’t ventured into the genre since.  “Jersey Boys” marks his return, directing the adaption of the hit Broadway musical of the same name.  It claims to tell the story of the pop group The Four Seasons, but it’s more focused on the group’s lead singer, Frankie Valli.  This confusion is emblematic of the film, which never quite grasps a point.

            What struck me most while I was watching it was how odd the structure was.  It lays out the story with little regard for arcs, often relying on one of the band members to turn and explain to the audience a plot point or their feelings.  The musical, I later found out, is structured into four parts, one for each member of the band.  I now realize that the film was structured this way as well, with only one band member addressing the audience at a time.  This was not obvious while I watched it, hence it failed to give any structure to the meandering plot.  Also confusing was its sense of passing time.   The film would jump forward, but the date in which it landed wouldn’t be obvious.  Then at one point, for no particular reason, we jump back two years.  The rest of the story is told completely linearly, which makes this backward jump seem awkward and out of place.

            Younger audience members such as myself will likely be unfamiliar with The Four Seasons (I had never heard of them) and will only recognize their most famous hits.  With no vested interest, the film really had to sell me on why these guys were interesting.  Did they have a really messy start?  Were they plagued by personal flaws that tragically drug them down?  Were they particularly talented musicians/performers?  The answers are no, no, and sort of, which isn’t enough to make an interesting film.  The men all grew up in Jersey, and in movie world, if you’re of Italian decent in Jersey, then you have ties to the mob.  They do seem to have had some loose associations, but it never gets them into too much trouble.  The personal flaws that are brought up are stale:  one has a gambling problem and several struggle to keep their families together during their long absences on the road.  It’s also explicitly stated several times that only two of them are really talented, and guess what?  Those are the two who survive in the industry.  It really does bring into question why these guys deserve their own musical.  To be honest, it seems to have been a money play.  Bob Gaudio, an original member and the songwriter of the group, had the musical made.  The movie gives the impression that he and Valli own the songs, and I’m guessing that part of the story’s true.

            The reason this film isn’t a total bust lies in the obvious effort of everyone involved.  It was a flawed project from the start, but you get the sense that Clint, the actors, the crew, and even the writers did their best.  Costumes, makeup, and set design are all spot-on and are often the only things that help the audience navigate the changing time periods.  The writers manage to get in some laugh-out-loud jokes; I mean, with the name The Four Seasons, how do you not make a Vivaldi joke?  Then there’s the actors, who portray their thin characters as well as they can.  But it’s Clint and cinematographer Tom Stern’s work that elevates this into watchable territory.  They’ve worked together since 2002’s “Blood Work,” and no other filmmakers working today use light and shadow like they do.  They have a penchant for lighting one side of an actor’s face, letting the shadow of their hair and nose streak across the other side.  Here, they use soft lighting along with other techniques to evoke the time period.  It looks beautiful, so even when what’s happening onscreen isn’t very interesting, it is pleasing to look at.

            As a nice bow on the end of this meandering film, it just stops, without anything being resolved or wrapped up.  This is my best impersonation of it.

            Other Notes:

Ø  Several plot elements, like the girlfriend and the daughter, aren’t given enough screen time to make an impact.

Ø  John Lloyd Young, who played Valli, was far too old to play a teenaged version of the character.  I was completely confused as to why everyone was treating a 30 year old man like a kid at the beginning of the film.

Ø  When did the daughter decide she wanted to be a singer?

Ø  It’s a respectable failure.  Keep swinging, Clint.