Romance & Cigarettes DVD: Review By Dodd

John Tuturro is probably one of the most recognizable faces to come out of Hollywood. And I do stress the word "face." It is likely that half of the people who have spotted Turturro as eccentric characters in films such as The Big Lebowski and Quiz Show know his face, but do not know his name. It is clear that the man has quite a taste in his choice of film roles where he primarily plays supporting fiddle, but with a very strong sound. When I heard that the beloved actor was making his directorial debut with the film Romance & Cigarettes, my curiosity peaked. Much like fellow oddball character actor Steve Buscemi has impressively directed indies such as Interview, I expected Turturro to take a walk on the wild side. Considering the fact that his project is a musical, I became even more interested. The day has finally come and Romance & Cigarettes is now available on DVD. Let's just say I do not feel romantic...or like having a cigarette.

The film stars an ensemble cast, but the main character is working class oaf Nick Murder (James Gandolfini). Nick is your stereotypical male pig who goes to his blue collar construction job every day and has very little satisfaction with his life. At the middle of his life, he has found some sense of pleasure in his affair with the red-headed Irish nympho Tula (Kate Winslet). This secretive tryst comes to a halt when Nick's neglected wife Kitty (Susan Sarandon) finds out about the affair, which puts their marriage on the rocks.

This plot of infidelity is only a component of what the film tries to offer the audience. Nick and Kitty have a trio of daughters played by Mandy Moore, Mary-Louise Parker, and Aida Turturro who spend night and day playing garage band riffs on their back patio. Moore's character is dating a strange greaser (Bobby Canavale) who wears his hair like James Brown and seduces his girlfriend with flame job underwear. Kitty also has a hotshot cousin played by Christopher Walken who shows up awkwardly from time to time as what appears to be comic relief that has fallen flat. Did I mention that they all break into occasional acts of spontaneous song and dance?

Romance & Cigarettes seems like an idea that should work. The general idea of it is to tell a story of lust and forgiveness within the framework of a Brooklyn-set musical. Musicals set in working class neighborhoods have always succeeded from West Side Story to Little Shop of Horrors. What this appears to be is a cross between experimental cinema and karaoke night. When "A Man Without Love" first kicks off the start of the film, I expected something magical. Then as the actors began to silently lip-sync, or simply accompany the original vocals with their off-tune voices, the moment of pleasurable escapism became deflated. It seems as though Turturro and the cast decided to really cut loose and have fun to the point that the film feels like one big inside joke. It really is terrific when directors are able to complete a personal project, but Romance & Cigarettes really does alienate its viewers.

Along the lines of performances, it is many times disappointing to see so many big names not performing to their fullest potential. Christopher Walken is especially overused to a more extreme degree than his appearance in Joe Dirt as he swaggers merrily in his bowling shirt proving that his latest "funny man" persona has perhaps been driven into the ground. If there is one performance that really redeems this film, it is a brief appearance by veteran comic Elaine Stritch as Gandolfini's mother. Her explicit monologue proves that the stage starlet still has what it takes to entertain. Everyone else feels a bit awkwardly cast, especially Parker as the daughter of Gandolfini and Sarandon (?).

Commentary

John Turturro does the commentary track with his son Amedeo. This is another shred of proof that the film truly is personal. The two of them share a nice bond as they comment on the film. Yet there is so much nonchalant chit-chat about the film with little to share about conception. It seems as though Turturro has made this film with no explanation at all except that he has wanted to make it for many years. This is pretty much capitalized also in the brig Film Introduction by John Turturro.

Making a Homemade Musical

This isn't really about making a musical at all. Some of the films stars, such as Kate Winslet and Susan Sarandon, are played on phone call audio clips as behind-the-scenes footage is displayed onscreen. There is really nothing musical-related here. Instead the cast members just ramble on about how much they enjoyed this project and how great John Turturro is to work with.

The DVD also includes deleted scenes.

Widesceen. The film has a visual magic to it that is not so much matched by the sound. However, along the lines of direction, John Turturro really has a keen eye for capturing scenes.

5.1 Dolby Surround. The film has undeniably terrific song choices. Unfortunately, they are butchered by the karaoke- like singing along of its stars. Susan Sarandon's odd rendition of "Piece of My Heart" is especially baffling.

The film comes in a standard DVD case. The front cover pictures Kate Winset laying down with a focus on her cleavage. Being that Winslet's head is out of frame, this could be a well-paid body double.

Romance & Cigarettes is a film that struggled to make it to screens, and I anticipated seeing this musical and its supposed magic. However, it falls on the tepid side. I wanted so much to enjoy and comprehend this film that John Turturro has struggled to bring to screens, but I just didn't feel its message or its music. Perhaps this is worth sampling as a rental, but I highly go against the idea of blindly buying this title.

Questions? Comments? Just want to talk movies? Drop me a line at dodd@movieweb.com