So what's it like? Whats he like ? Be honest I can hear you cry. He is very good , but he should be seeing he is essentially playing himself ; a rock star living out his days in a chic villa in the Ibizan hills. He has bagged himself a sexy wife half his age (Kacey Barnfield in a "watch my career go stratospheric" role ), who spends much time swimming naked in the pool, and generally being sexy. One of the first scenes has the pool cleaner drooling as she majestically emerges from the water wearing only a blase expression. She has little to do but her presence is the catalyst for the plots tortured twists that follow.
Iggy has acted before, notably in a funny scene with Tom Waits in Coffee and Cigarettes where they famously dont hit it off. His first few lines are a bit clunky but he soon mellows into the part and is pitch perfect for the remainder. When he is not blasting the local rabbit population with his shotgun, he is often suffering in bed with various unexplained ailments, at least until the tawdry denoument. He has a deluxe studio set up in a upstairs room where he plays around a bit and pop pills, daftly washed down by the contents of a hip flask. Even rock stars have to kick the booze when they are on meds for serious diseases like cancer ( or leukemia). The real Iggy is glimpsed more and more as the tale progresses. he has to drive off somewhere, so its a Rolls Royce he leaves in, perfect for the windy lanes of Ibiza's mountains ! Theres a great POV shot that looks like vaseline has been smeared on the lens to give a sense of how little he can see through his cataracts.Iggy famously has driven a pink Rolls around Miami way for years. He is also having trouble with his legs ( and possibly hip) which means he walks with a pronounced limp. This is clear to see. His ailments in the movie maybe fictional, but Ig is paying for his wild ways now in later life.
The main thing though, is that he is still uber cool. He brings the disarming toothy smile to his dialogues with his wife's loathsome ex-boyfriend who turns up, digging for gold. Bill is all business, no small talk. Having invited Lucas to stay for dinner, his opening gambit is ; "You are either stupid or a idiot...."and proceeds to explain why his presence means one of the two.
"Why cant I be both" counters Lucas. Iggy laughs.
"Thats good, I like you. Stay the night and i will take you rabbit hunting tomorrow. Its good to hunt".
So begins the second half of this enjoyable melodrama.
The plot twists do descend into the absurd, but I was captivated enough not to let them worry me. When one of your protagonists explains how he wants to die, you know you have entered the world of make believe. It works in the cinema because Iggy is a great presence, and Kacey Barnfield is always his equal. Lucas is a nasty villain who has little to redeem him, so it is hard for Ben Lamb to shine. The last 15 minutes are pretty ridiculous, but Toby Tobias has done a great job directing such difficult narrative twists. Congratulations to everyone involved. You have done an incredible job getting Iggy to appear. Here's hoping the movie works on the small screen, although I do worry the twists may be just a bit too difficult for all but the most committed to follow.
Oh, I want to rent that villa, is it on Airbnb ?
No comments:
Post a Comment