“Breakable You” is like a kinder, gentler version of Woody Allen’s “Crimes and Misdemeanors”: a rumination on human fallibility and corruption with lower stakes but a lot more sexual heat in its heart.
Freely adapted by writer-director Andrew Wagner (“Starting Out in the Evening”) and co-screenwriter Fred Parnes from Brian Morton’s well-reviewed novel, “Breakable You” is the story of the Weller family, a cluster of neurotic New Yorkers who live outwardly charmed but inwardly tempestuous lives.
“Matriarch” is perhaps the wrong word for Holly Hunter’s lithe and whippet-thin Eleanor, a character notably more obese in the book. But Eleanor is the beating heart of the Weller family, a self-sacrificing but self-aware mother to her wayward daughter Maud (Cristin Milioti, “Fargo”) and a long-suffering woman whose compassion for others is externalized through her psychotherapy practice.
About the only real challenge to Eleanor’s “I’m OK, You’re OK” approach to life is her ex-husband Adam (Tony Shalhoub), a monstrous narcissist whose best quality is that he’s so utterly and openly true to his own self-interest. Adam is a somewhat celebrated Broadway playwright, and he’s in the midst of a catastrophic dry spell, possibly signaling the end of his once-promising career.
When Adam unexpectedly comes to possess the only existing copies of an unknown theatrical masterpiece written by a dead friend, well, what’s a self-respecting narcissist with writer’s block supposed to do?
Changing Adam from novelist (in the book) to playwright is just one example of the blithe self-confidence of this adaptation. It works beautifully, giving Wagner an easy way to externalize some rather heady ideas (and yes, Kant and Schopenhauer are name-checked).
There are also two central sexual relationships, and they’re playful and erotic in ways Woody would never think of. Daughter Maud seduces a hunky but grief-stricken handyman (Omar Metwally, “The Affair”), only to become the one who needs caretaking when her depressive tendencies manifest themselves. Meanwhile, Eleanor is seduced by Adam’s chunky but charming brother Paul (Alfred Molina), an ex-paramour who has pined for her for years.
Both relationships are deeply carnal and bracingly direct. The Hunter-Molina sex scenes, in particular, are startlingly raw and, in that way, liberating. After all, when was the last time you saw a screen couple in their mid-50s performing hot sexual action?
In a strong field of excellent performances, the standout is easily Shalhoub, who is enthralling and almost entirely sympathetic in what could have been a monochromatic bad guy part. Shalhoub’s Adam is a riveting example of the old Jean Renoir dictum about how in real life, “every man has his reasons.” He’s a bastard who does bad things, but he just can’t see himself that way, so we don’t either. When Adam finally does have a moment of self-awareness, it’s more a small bow to the inevitable than a shattering epiphany, and therefore perfectly in character for a man who worships so ardently at the temple of self.
Adam ticks off most of the boxes for villainy in our fraught cultural moment: He’s an entitled male, unthinkingly exploitative of every woman in his life. He would be mercilessly punished by almost any other thoughtful film. By letting Shalhoub’s Adam occupy so much space without passing an easy judgment on him, Wagner presents a vision of comedy like Shakespeare’s — not punitive, but holistic.
“Breakable You” never endorses Adam’s narcissism, but it’s generous enough to admit that even the worst among us have a seat at the human feast.
17 Best Scene Stealers in 2016 Movies, From Tom Holland to Kristen Wiig (Photos)
He's sassier than C-3PO and doesn't take kindly to instructions. Of the many highlights in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," the movie finds its showstopper in the opinionated droid K-2SO (performed in motion capture by Alan Tudyk). Read on to see more of our 2016 scene stealers:
Lucasfilm/Disney
Jenny Slate's lovestruck Pomeranian named Gidget in "The Secret Life of Pets" won major points for devotion and just being plain adorable.
Illumination/Universal
Kumail Nanjiani's very first nude scene happens in a memorable sequence in Fox’s comedy "Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates." In it, he has a cameo as an island masseur named Keanu who practices extremely unconventional methods on his clients.
Speaking of Keanu, the kitten portrayed in the Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele springtime comedy of the same name stole the show. All of his little outfits in "Keanu," not to mention the kitten calendar sequence during the end credits are enough to make moviegoers meow with approval.
Mr. Big (voiced by Maurice LaMarche) is unforgettable in "Zootopia" as a gangster kingpin with a Joe Pesci-esque delivery.
Disney
Fans' first look at Tom Holland's Spider-Man was in "Captain America: Civil War." Even though he was on screen for a few short minutes, he showed himself to be simultaneously charming and acrobatic during his debut.
Marvel/Disney
Channing Tatum sang and danced his way through a memorable supporting role as a 1950s era big screen star in the Coen Brothers' comedy "Hail Caesar!"
Universal
Sigourney Weaver plays herself in "Finding Dory," as the celebrity voice that guides guests through the state-of-the-art aquarium from where the forgetful Blue Tang fish must escape.
Getty/Disney Pixar
Arguably one of the most egregiously under-watched movies of the year, the lovely "Love & Friendship" features a very funny Tom Bennett as a man who comes courting Kate Beckinsale. We dare you not to laugh as he attempts to dance.
Bernard Walsh
Remember the seagull from "The Shallows"? If you've seen the movie your answer would be a resounding "hell yes."
Columbia
The dark female figure named Diana, who haunts a family in the summer horror hit "Lights Out," claws and kills her way into viewers' nightmares. Portrayed by Alicia Vela Bailey, you don't ever want a bright room to dim when she's nearby.
The super slow sloth at the DMV in "Zootopia" put real-life workers at the government agency to shame.
Disney
An apparent spoof of Donatella Versace, Kristen Wiig played for laughs as a lip-plumped fashion designer with an indecipherable accent in "Zoolander 2."
Paramount
Sometimes being a scene stealer is a dubious distinction. Such were a handful of Japanese soldiers depicted in the Mel Gibson-directed World War II drama "Hacksaw Ridge." The enemy fighters pop up on screen quite quickly, scaring the bejeezus out of conscientious objector Desmond Doss, played by Andrew Garfield. They also elicit a horror movie-style jump scare from the audience -- hardly a positive attribute from an awards season contender.
Cross Creek
"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" shined that much more brightly when Alison Sudol appeared in the film as the mind-reading Queenie Goldstein.
Warner Bros.
Chris Hemsworth is a manly, yet, dim-witted assistant who also serves as great eye candy for the ladies in "Ghosbusters." His enthusiastic dance moves during the end credits alone are worth the price of admission.
Sony
There is a huge NASA-made motion visualization of the Earth's climate featured in the documentary "Before the Flood." And yes, it is arguably the movie's biggest scene stealer. Scientist Piers Sellers uses it to show Leonardo DiCaprio ocean surface temperatures as measured from space -- and points out that it captures the poles melting.
RatPac
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TheWrap’s Best & Worst 2016: Plus, that witty “Rogue One” droid and the seagull in “The Shallows”
He's sassier than C-3PO and doesn't take kindly to instructions. Of the many highlights in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," the movie finds its showstopper in the opinionated droid K-2SO (performed in motion capture by Alan Tudyk). Read on to see more of our 2016 scene stealers: