Benny & Joon a retro review by Ryan Ellis April 30, 2005
One of my favourite romantic comedies is 'Benny & Joon'. It probably shouldn't be. There's plenty of precious behaviour, the kind of stuff that often tickles my gag reflex. And while I'd ordinarily throw darts at a film that asks us to believe that true love just might be able to overcome serious mental illness, it works beautifully this time. Cheese abounds, but this slice of processed fromage has both charm and grace in delectable doses (unlike this sentence).
Credit the actors. It's unlikely that Barry Berman's script or Jeremiah Chechik's direction would have succeeded without Johnny Depp, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Aidan Quinn playing the leads. This movie belongs to Depp, although he plays neither Benny nor Joon. Quinn and Masterson have those roles and they're effective as the grown-up brother & sister with a quirky co-dependent relationship. She's battling schizophrenia (the highs, the lows, the moments of pyro...) and he's sacrificed a social life to take care of her because their parents died in a car accident many years before.
It's only recently that Joe Average Moviegoer has actually bothered attending Johnny Depp's movies ('Pirates Of The Caribbean', for example) to turn him into the one-of-a-kind movie star he always should have been. If there was any lingering doubt after 'Edward Scissorhands' that the "21 Jump Street" pin-up star was a terrific actor, 'Benny & Joon' erased it. He actually manages to underplay here, even though he spends much of the film doing uncanny impersonations of Chaplin & Keaton. The highlight of this schtick comes in a clowning sequence straight out of the silent movie days. Depp's Sam is a kook, alright---with all his dicing of potatoes via tennis racket and his ironing of grilled cheese sandwiches---and I couldn't get enough of him.
Masterson's performance as a quirky artist woman-child is not quite as memorable, partly because the quirky artist nutso type has been a cinematic staple a bit too often over the years. However, Masterson hits the right notes, even when all the screenplay sometimes asks for is sulking and petulance. But even if she had been dreadful in this movie (which clearly isn't the case), I'd forgive anything for the look on her face when she sees her beloved Sam swinging outside the window of her hospital room. Ode to joy moment right there and you can never get enough of THOSE at the movies.
In a way, Quinn has the most difficult role. He's the serious grump, saddled with the cautious big brother bit. If Quinn hadn't been careful, Benny would have come off as a first-class bore. He doesn't, though, and that's probably because the actor is so natural and sympathetic. People find themselves putting their own lives on hold for needy family members all the time. Overprotective or not, this is the kind of man who can be counted upon to always do the right thing. Quinn has had to wade through these kinds of wet blanket waters in other movies (see 'Legends Of The Fall') and he somehow comes out okay on the other side. It's our good luck that good actors can do that.
It doesn't take long for Joon & Sam to fall heels over head in love, so the friction is between Joon & Benny. Chechik and Berman are smart to make the siblings resent each other quite a bit even BEFORE Sam enters the picture. They've spent a lot of time together and, love notwithstanding, they're kinda sick of each other. Sam is the ignitor for change in their lives, stirring up what needed to be stirred long ago. Like Rain Man before her, Joon is unbending and couldn't function if expected to change her routine. [Join the club, sister!] At the end of the story, she'll try to grow up a bit, but she might never have wanted to try unless she met Sam.
'Benny & Joon' gels because of those 3 actors, but the supporting cast is wonderful too. Chechik is either a marvelous judge of talent or just plain lucky to have cast so many superb actors. Julianne Moore, Dan Hedaya, William H. Macy, Oliver Platt, and CCH Pounder all turn up and do some nice things. Moore (who was just getting a solid foothold in Hollywood when this film was released in 1993) is vulnerable and sweet as Ruthie, a local waitress, former Z actress, and Benny's potential lady friend. Hedaya and Macy don't have much to do here, but they're 2 of the best character actors of the past 15 years and I had to at least give them credit for THAT in this review.
Also providing great support are The Proclaimers with their big hit, "I'm Gonna Be". The catchy tune opens and closes the film, and it made me want to find the song wherever it is on the ol' CD shelf and give it a few more spins before bedtime. Speaking of music, Rachel Portman, Charlie Reid, and Craig Reid are credited with the score. What they've composed is a delight, especially the circus-like orchestration during the climactic "love can conquer any psychosis" scene.
The state of modern rom-coms is mighty awful, so 'Benny & Joon' is even more of a standout now than it was in 1993. Its innocence and irresistible charm make up for credibility gaps, but the whole deal wouldn't fly without ol' Eddie Scissorhands. Sam is a Johnny Depp original. Nevertheless, Mary Stuart Masterson has the best line in the picture, sadly declaring that raisins are just "humiliated grapes". There's something about that line that made me smile. Then again, lots of things in this movie made me smile.
To drop a line, write to ryan222@rogers.com or flickershows@hotmail.com
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