Duane Hopwood (2005)

the audience applauded

Good movie but grossly overrated

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

The acting in this movie is really good.

David Schwimmer is absolutely fabulous in the title role. He conveys the anger, fear and torment of a man whose life is going downhill, and know it, and can't stop it. All the props that keep him going are taken away until all he has left is himself, and the truth. And that is what this movie is about: confronting the truth. Duane Hopwood is a metaphor for everyone. His life is changing and he doesn't like it and does everything he can to avoid having to deal with it. Frustration and anger leads to rage as Duane tries protect what is left of his self-respect. Duane's story is made even more poignant by the fact that he is essentially a good, decent person, which makes his decline that more intense and tragic. For this movie is about tragedy, and redemption. It is possible to reverse the downward spiral, but it takes a lot of strength, and for Duane Hopwood, his life is on the line.

There is always more to a human being than meets the eye. But it's a rare film that provides any kind of depth to movie characters, who are all too frequently one-dimensional drones - good or bad, mean or nice, caring or indifferent. Duane Hopwood is that rare film that delves deep below the surface of each of the main characters.David Schwimmer plays Hopwood, a divorced Atlantic City father who works as a pit boss at Caeser's. Our first impression of him is one of revulsion. He's driving drunk, pounding a beer while bobbing and weaving down the highway. And if that wasn't bad enough, after he's pulled over he reveals to the cop that his 8 year old daughter is asleep in the backseat.As the film develops, though, so does Schwimmer's character. Hopwood is really a caring father, albeit one who's alcoholism has gotten the better of him. His compassion - at least when he's sober - extends not only to his two daughters, but to his ex-wife (Janeane Garafaolo), a friend who needs a place to stay (Judah Friedlander), his elderly gay neighbors, and even an obnoxious loudmouth at the casino, much to Hopwood's eventual detriment.Garafaolo appears at first as a miserable, angry, shrew, but her character develops as well, revealing a struggling single mom whose kids are her primary concern.At the end of the film, the ex-wife and the kids have packed up and left New Jersey for South Carolina with her new beau, and Duane has been fired from his job. It's not at all clear if he will be able to get on the wagon, deal with the departure of those for whom he cares the most, and put his life back together. But there is a ray of hope. And we're left rooting for him.

For David Schwimmer making a name in feature films has, and will most likely continue to be a tall order, as it's tough to shed an image honed for over a decade. His first post- Friends feature is 2005's Duane Hopwood , a small film praised by critics that was only given a limited theatrical release.Duane Hopwood is a man who once had it all, including a loving wife (Janeane Garofalo) and two daughters. Now that he's an alcoholic, all Duane has left is his cushy job as a pit boss at Caesar's Palace in Atlantic City. Now divorced, his downfall accelerates when he's stopped for drunk driving with his daughter in the car. A judge goes somewhat easy on Duane, only revoking his driver's license. He uses a bicycle to get to work until his friend and co-worker Anthony (Judah Friedlander) moves in with him and drives him to work. All that Duane wants is to spend time with his kids and get back with his wife, but numerous glasses of scotch and cans of beer always get in the way.To say David Schwimmer has arrived as a serious actor is a major understatement. His portrayal of a man spiraling downward fast is more than Oscar worthy, as this character's problems only start with dependence. His is a straightforward, dramatic account, but Schwimmer levels things out by bringing a sly sense of humor to the proceedings when necessary. Simply, David Schwimmer blew me away in this film.Duane Hopwood is tough at times to watch, as any man with children is bound to choke up watching the title character's hardships. Writer/director Matt Mulhern begins his film with a montage of Duane's good times, laughing with his wife and kids before making the pivotal decision of stopping at a bar one night—soon after, we have a front row seat to his demise. Mulhern's pacing is excellent; so much happens in the film that it's hard to believe the running time is a mere 80 minutes. Judah Friedlander, one of the great character actors, embodies Anthony, who gives Duane enough comedy in his life to keep him afloat. Dick Cavett also pops up as Duane's neighbor, and Janeane Garofalo gives her best performance in years as Duane's wife.Ending a film like this can be difficult. Mulhern treads this carefully, and pulls off a satisfying and realistic conclusion. One comes away feeling truly sorry for this loving father who is crippled by addiction, as so many people are, and his resulting inability to make rational and intelligent decisions. Hopefully, more people will discover this film now that it's widely available, if only to find that David Schwimmer has the acting chops to potentially enjoy a lucrative movie career. Oh, and who is this Ross guy, anyway? I've already forgotten.

This movie was very accurate in it's depiction of how an alcoholic's life slowly falls apart and how the alcoholic does not see that it is the disease of alcoholism that is taking everything away from him. My only problem with the film is the seeming lack of an ending. It clearly needed another half hour to gather the story lines and wrap it up.I don't know how many people reading this have ever belonged to AA, but anyone who has will see the deterioration of Duane's choices and the confusion that goes along with being drunk all the time. I was so hoping that Duane would go to AA and see how sobering up could save his life. The way the movie was going,I got the impression that he was just going to continue drinking. I just wanted an ending.