MAN ABOUT TOWN
US, 2006, 96 minutes, Colour.
Ben Affleck, Rebecca Romijn, John Cleese, Mike Binder, Kal Penn, Gina Gershon, Jerry O’ Connell, Adam Goldberg, Howard Hesseman, Sam Ball, Damien Wayans, Amber Valletta.
Directed by Mike Binder.
Man About Town was written and directed by Mike Binder. An actor, Binder has developed as a writer and director with such films as Londinium and, more high profile, The Upside of Anger and Reign Over Me. He is interested in relationships but, especially, adults challenged in mid-life.
Ben Affleck, rather wooden in many ways, plays the man about town quite credibly. It is an image of his roles in such films as Jersey Girl. The film goes into his past, his unhappy childhood, his work and workaholic attitudes as an adult, his dishonesty in setting up his company, his falling in love, his feeling betrayed by his wife’s affair, things collapsing around him. He undergoes an adult education experience, in journaling, the lecture being played in Pythonesque fashion by John Cleese.
The film is naturalistic and many ways – although the events are played for ironic comedy with touches of satire. The setting is Hollywood, television writing world – easy targets for satire. Rebecca Romain is his wife. His company partners are played by Mike Binder, Kal Penn and Gina Gershon. Jerry O’Connell? and Adam Goldberg are clients. Howard Hesseman is his father who has experienced a stroke. Damien Wayans, one of the Wayans family, plays his sometimes dimwitted assistant. Amber Valletta (Hitch) is the wife of the client – and does a parody audition from Basic Instinct.
The film is aimed at the popular young adult and midlife adult audience and will find its target there. Others may find it perhaps a bit too eccentric – and not related to their experiences.
1.The work of Mike Binder, as writer, director? His contribution as actor?
2.An LA story, the show business world?
3.The blend of realism and stylised comedy? Ironies? Satire? The journal course? Life in the office, board meetings? Homes? Clients and the TV world? The musical score, songs?
4.The focus on midlife, the busy man, the workaholic, assessing his life, remembering his childhood, the traumas, feelings of guilt, ambitions, honesty and dishonesty, betrayal, forgiveness? Hard-heartedness? Hope?
5.The journal course, John Cleese and his eccentric style, speaking, writing on the blackboard, treatment of the students? The classes, the interactions, Jack and his writing the journal, the secrets, their being voiced in voice-over, the journal stolen, giving information to his enemies? His not wanting the lecturer to read it? The recovery of the journal, its importance, handing it over?
6.Ben Affleck’s portrait of Jack: age, lifestyle, his keeping his journal, the voice-over, the flashbacks to his being a child, his relationship with a girl, to his father, his father being hard and distant, the mother and her support of him, Anthony as the older brother, his jealousy of Anthony, Anthony taking the girl away? Anthony’s death? His parents as models for his later behaviour? As a young man working, his ambitions? The group, the raid, taking the documents, the clients? In court, lying, winning the case, his reaction and spending the night in jail? At work, his friends and partners? Meeting Nina, the attraction, dancing, marrying her? His father, his stroke? Looking after him? Nina and his relationship, the affluent home, her affair, driving in the car, her confession? His meetings and the clients? The truth, his collapse? Moving Nina out? Jimmy Dooley and transferring the possessions, Dooley returning and bashing him, taking the journal? His recovery – and his teeth? Fixing the teeth? The baseball bat and his attack on Jimmy? Barb Ling? Her reputation, talking to her, the restaurant, trying to get the journal back? The chase? His sweet-talking David, having his wife as a client, crashing literally their gate? The build-up to the climax, Barb and the discussions with Nina? David and his wife and the audition? Phil turning up? Mort and the other partners? Dooley wanting to set fire to the office?
7.Morty, Arlene, Feinberg and their characters, interactions at the board meetings, at work, needing the clients, their attitude towards Nina’s affair with Phil, pleading with Jack, spying on him in the restaurant, the martial arts training, using it with the Chinese at the restaurant?
8.Nina, the audience seeing her through Jack’s comments, the journal, her affair, telling the truth, her being ousted, later perspective on her, Jack neglecting her, her love for him, trying to meet and discuss, pleading to come back, the discussion with Barb, taking the journal? The happy ending?
9.Jack’s father, in the past, the entertainment work, distant from his wife, blaming her, the death of Anthony, his stroke, Jack caring for him in the house, dancing naked before the fish, in the fish tank?
10.David as a client, the discussions, acting tough, the visit, crashing the gate, the discussions, the Basic Instinct audition?
11.Phil, his type, TV writing, the affair, his embarrassment with Jack, the phone call, his arrival at the end? The mix-up with Jack talking to both Phil and Nina on the phone?
12.Dooley, his jealousy, his girlfriend, the bashing, setting fire to the office, Jack firing his nephew?
13.Barb, the scripts, being ignored, writing the article and the expose, at the class, the restaurant scene, with the journal, the clash with Nina?
14.The final class, handing over the journal? The future, Jack being free, Arlene in charge, Morty frustrated? A new beginning?
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MAN ABOUT TOWN
US, 2006, 96 minutes, Colour.
Ben Affleck, Rebecca Romijn, Mike Bender, John Cleese, Gina Gershon, Kal Penn, Bai Ling, Jerry O’Connell?, Howard Hesseman, Amber Valetta, Adam Goldberg.
Directed by Mike Bender.
Man about Town is a moralising comedy. It was written and directed by Mike Binder, who made similar-intentioned films like Londinium and The Upside of Anger.
The film capitalises on the screen presence of Ben Affleck. Up to this point, he had been a conventional actor. With Matt Damon he had won an Oscar for the screenplay for Good Will Hunting. However, he was about to become a serious director with Gone Baby Gone, followed by The Town and the Oscar winning Argo.
He appears as the head of an agency, with flashbacks indicating that he had plotted as the young man with various members of his company to secede, take the clients and form a new company. At this stage of his life, everything seems fine, chasing clients, making deals, working with his board which includes the director, Mike Binder, as well as Gina Gershon. He has a client, Adam Goldberg, who has an affair with his wife, Rebecca Romijn. He is also are chasing another client, played by Jerry O’ Connell, which includes taking on his wife, Amber Valetta.
At the centre of the film is Jack going to a night class run by John Cleese in his familiar authoritarian schoolmasterish fashion, Cleese having made a number of training videos in real life. The course is on diary-writing and Jack begins a very detailed diary, with flashbacks into his past as a child, his relationship with his father who now lives with him in a state of dementia. He remembers the death of his older brother, his brother taking away his little girl friend, his dying in an accident in a car with his mother.
Jack is harsh in his judgments on his wife, Nina. He ousts her, employing carriers to take away all her possessions. The main carrier is in a relationship was the Chinese journalist whose scripts were rejected by Jack’s company. He mugs and bashes Jack - and Jack later returns the bashing. The journalist is about to write an expose a story using his diary which has been stolen.
There are some comic and satiric touches - but the main thrust of the film is the opportunity to examine oneself, face challenges and the truth, and build a better future.
1. The title and its tone, the status of the central character, self-opinion?
2. The tone, offices, agencies, homes, restaurants? The musical score?
3. A moral tale, discovery, self-awareness, facing oneself, challenge, change?
4. Jack, Ben Affleck and his presence, his character, the audience observing him, the flashbacks, the changes? His experience, his future?
5. Going to the adult education class, the group, the lecturer and John Cleese and his familiar style, caustic comments? Diary-writing, the process of writing, the effect, the attention to detail, self-awareness, discovery? The classes, the issue of the lecturer reading the diary, his reaction? Jack’s absences in hospital? Coming again, his agreement? The final encounter with the lecturer? And the need for correct spelling?
6. Jack and his team, in the office, the board meetings and interactions, Phil as a client, Nina telling him about the affair, his extreme reaction, ousting her, the effect on Nina, the issue of keeping Phil as a client, the board and his decisions, Arlene and her visit to his office, her plea, his continuing with his harsh attitudes?
7. Jack and his father, his father and dementia, the fish tank, dancing nude, watching the pornography and commenting on his wife? The flashbacks, his father in his heyday, Jack and Peter and the little girl, playing, Peter winning her over, the parents’ reaction, Jack and his observing? His father’s being busy, harsh, the mother taking Peter in the car, the crash, the blame on the mother for the death? Jack as the awkward boy, playing games, the effect of these experiences?
8. The secretary, his uncle, doing the carrier job, moving of Nina’s things, the bitterness? The journalist and her relationship with the uncle? The rejection of her scripts? The mugging, the bashing of Jack, in hospital? His recovery, the buck teeth and the comic touches? The journalist and her being in classes, the issue of the article, taking the diary, the various meals, in her family’s restaurant, the attack, the group going to the meal, trying to persuade her to be a client, grabbing the diary, the chases, the martial arts confrontation, and their preparation in marital arts as part of group morale? Jack and his going into the house, bashing the assailant? The journalist, meeting Nina, Nina offering to talk to her, in the room, taking the diary, Nina being locked in?
9. Mort, his character, friendship with Jack, his role in the company? Arlene, the past relationship, her becoming the president? The other members of the board? The sacking of the assistant and the eagerness of his replacement? The issue of the court case, Jack’s anger, ousted, winning the case, yet the compromising material in the diary?
10. Nina, her character, relationship with Jack, love, talking with Jack, the confession, his harsh reaction? Her wanting to come back? The journalist, the encounter, locked in the cupboard, the phone calls, Jack and his responding to Phil and Nina at the same time? In the elevator, Jack chasing her, the reconciliation?
11. David, as a client, his wife, the desperate phone call, coming for the audition, Basic Instinct, the end and the happy ending?
12. Going back to class, the encounter with the lecturer? A happy ending for Jack and for Nina?
