I must admit, up until recently, I was not looking forward to "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." The trailer made the film look like shameless Oscar bait and felt very emotionally manipulative to me. Couple that with the heavy Oscar buzz--undeserved in my mind as no one had seen it--the film was receiving up until about a month ago and it just wasn't a film I was interested in. Then the reviews started coming in, most of them mixed, but there was at least one rave review from a critic I highly respect that got me a little more interested in the film. Eventually I got to the point where I was looking forward to seeing it, and I'm happy to say that my early thoughts about the film were wrong. This is a film that delivers on every level. It's not perfect--I found the ending to be quite sappy for example--but it is nonetheless a fine example of dramatic cinematic execution.
Based on the book by Jonathan Safran Foer, "Extremely Loud" is the story of Oskar Schell (newcomer Thomas Horn), a young boy who may or may not have Asperger's Syndrome ("The tests were inconclusive," he tells one character). Oscar lives in New York City and is suffering emotionally from the loss of his father Thomas (Tom Hanks) on September 11. But when he visits his father's closet for the first time a year after his death and finds a key hidden in a vase, Oskar becomes convinced that this key must lead to some mystery somewhere, and he embarks on a quest across the city in search of what he hopes is some final message from his father.
That all may sound a little sappy, and to be honest that's what I thought at first as well, as this is very similar to the plot description given by Warner Bros. But I'm trying not to give away any spoilery details, and trust me when I say that the story makes sense as it plays out. We see in flashbacks that Thomas often gave Oskar various quests and puzzles to solve, presumably to keep him occupied and channel his clearly hyperactive energy. These moments between Oskar and his father are quite touching as Tom Hanks is perfectly cast in the role. This is the Tom Hanks many will remember from ten or twenty years ago, playing yet another effortlessly likeable character. He doesn't get much screen time as this Oskar's story, but that's not a problem as Thomas Horn is an absolute revelation. He appears in literally every scene in the movie and he completely captures every quirk of Oskar's character. Whether in the playful early scenes with his father, the narrated descriptions of all his apparent oddities (he even refers to himself as odd), or his increasingly heartbreaking emotional outbursts, this is simply a brilliant performance from a young actor who looks to have a great future.
I will say that this is not a film to be taken lightly. The events of 9/11 hover over the film, and in Oskar's interactions with people all over New York, no matter what their personal situations are, when they learn Oskar's story and his connection to what he refers to as "the worst day," we can see how deeply each of them was affected by that terrible tragedy. Politics are wisely avoided, with Oskar simply being unable to understand why people would fly a plane into a building and kill his father. Imagery from the day is fleeting, but it's powerfully used, and there's an extremely heartbreaking conversation between Thomas and his wife Linda (Sandra Bullock) when he's trapped in one of the towers. There are also a series of voicemails left by Thomas that are revealed throughout the film; these scenes are a testament to Hanks's talent as he is able to convey so much emotion in his voice alone. There are also some very emotionally intense moments in Oskar's conversations with various people and overall this is just an emotionally draining film...though not nearly at the level of something like, say, "Schindler's List."
The best thing though is that the emotion and the drama never feel forced...at least until the end. The ending might feel a bit sappy to some, and it was the one real flaw that keeps me from giving the film a perfect rating. But up until that point, the story and the emotions feel completely believable. Maybe Oskar's determination to walk everywhere (he is now afraid of public transportation, among many other things), is a little far fetched, but a scene in which he walks across the Brooklyn Bridge (bridges also scare him, though evidently not as much as subways), is particularly effective. Perhaps everything is so believable because Oskar is such a unique individual. He clearly thinks and sees the world differently than most other people, but that turns out to not be such a bad thing.
I haven't even touched on all the excellent supporting performances from the likes of Max von Sydow, Viola Davis, Jeffrey Wright, and others, but in the interest of avoiding spoilers I'll simply say that all three are particularly effective. The score from Alexandre Desplat is moving, particularly in the emotional moments. Even the sound design is immaculate; in fact the use of sound in this film may have more of an effect in developing Oskar's character than I've seen in any other film, maybe ever. Overall, this is simply an excellent drama that works on almost every level. The Oscar buzz on this film has all but died out, but it's nonetheless absolutely worth seeing for anyone who loves quality cinema or simply a great story.
"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" is rated PG-13 for emotional thematic material, some disturbing images, and language.
Running time: 129 minutes.
Released domestically on December 25, 2011, by Warner Bros. Pictures.
3.5 stars out of 4.
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