Audience Member
The thing I like best about "Walking and Talking" is the way it refuses to stoop to sugarcoating. As its action involves the romantic misadventures of a pair of successful women, it has the potential to be a vacuous display of midlife crises in sitcom packaging. But it sidesteps "Friends" saccharinity through unaffected writing and performances that startlingly capture the imperfections of its characters; it's dramedy without undeserved, feel-good, twists.
Movies akin to this one don't take long to win me over. As a stan of the works of Robert Altman and John Cassavetes, I'm more easily seduced by films that find their brilliance by observing its characters, by allowing them to live instead of throwing dramatic curveballs in their faces to increase our enjoyment. As it's written and directed by Nicole Holofcener, an independent film superstar renowned for her ability to find frothy diversion within the pains of life, we expect "Walking and Talking" to be a character study of sympathy and humor, not judgment and cynicism. And our expectations come to fruition. The movie is a preeminent one in Holofcener's dependable career.
Her muse, the lovely Catherine Keener, stars as Amelia, a thirty-something in turmoil. A Manhattanite with a good job and a good life, she's been steadily happy for most of her adult life - having always had her best friend, Laura (Anne Heche), by her side, her personal obstacles have never proved to be much shattering because they've had each other. But Laura's getting married to Frank (Todd Field), with whom she spends much of her time. Single and increasingly self-conscious about her own love life, Amelia's descent into an existential crisis arrives long before she ever thought she'd have one. Suddenly, things aren't the way they've always been.
Laura's doubts are highlighted in "Walking and Talking," too - she's nervous about her engagement, having fantasies about sleeping with patients (she's a therapist) and getting in fights with Frank to indulge her anxieties - but the film is at its most glowing when preoccupied with Amelia, a diamond of a female lead. As it's one of the premier roles given to Keener, who is usually cast in roles that require her to be a witty, sexy love interest, or a sardonically shrill quasi-villainess, Amelia is a woman we can't stop watching. We almost like seeing her make bad decisions; Holofcener makes her fascinatingly flawed, Keener providing the spirited, self-loathing charisma.
She's a hell of a character, and it's her relationships with those closest to her that characterize her as a force-of-nature, a catch who's never found a guy more because of luck and not because of a supercilious personality (though speaking her mind isn't unlikely). Amelia's good friends with her last boyfriend (Liev Schreiber), a man matching in personality who complains to her of his own romantic entanglements, and she's buddies with Frank. Among the greatest components of the film, too, is her brief fling with Bill (a scene stealing Kevin Corrigan), a video store clerk she sorta kinda dates out of pity, actually ends up liking, and sleeps with. A stupid mistake ends their relationship, and that sets off some of the movie's most acidic (and funny) moments.
But what we take away most from "Walking and Talking," in addition to its somehow uplifting aftertaste, is Holofcener's extraordinary ability to sketch three-dimensional characters without staginess or disparaging undertones. Maybe they all somehow piece together to create a cinematic version of herself. No matter: "Walking and Talking" is a slice-of-life delicacy that turns malaise into intelligent entertainment.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/03/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Early film from Nicole Holofcener the not only entertaining, but insightful.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/22/23
Full Review
Audience Member
"A movie for everyone who wants to get married and stay single at the same time."
Walking and Talking es una película perfecta. Habla de las relaciones, y como van evolucionando, y a pesar de ser dramática y tocar temas emocionales, tiene un humor inesperado. Hace tiempo que no reía tanto con una película, y esto se debe a las actuaciones realistas, especialmente de Catherine Keener, igualmente que del guión que fluye naturalmente, y en ciertas partes pareciera que estamos presenciando escenas de la vida real.
Amelia (Catherine Keener) es una mujer que está teniendo dificultades en su vida. Empezando que su mejor amiga Laura, esta comprometida, y esto amenaza la relación que hasta ese momento tenían, y esto se le agrega que tiene dificultades consiguiendo hombres que le interesen, ya que llevan a tomar decisiones erradas, tales como salir con el hombre de la tienda donde renta películas, que es un geek que la lleva a una convención de monstruos, y a ver películas gore que la dejan con dolor de estómago. Todo esto transcurre al dejar de ir a terapia. También su gato es diagnosticado con cáncer, y le presta dinero a su ex novio obsesionado con el porno para que mantenga llamadas eróticas a larga distancia. A pesar de que su vida sea tan caótica, igualmente trata de que su relación con Laura se mantenga a flote, quien tiene sus propios problemas.
Walking and Talking fue una revelación para mi. No esperaba mucho de esta película pero me hipnotizo de principio a fin. Puede ser por el hecho de que me sentí identificada con los personajes, y a la vez me divertí viendo sus tragedias, que no son tan descabelladas. El realismo solo hace todo mejor, y siempre es bueno ver a personas que cometen errores al igual que todos, y eso no quiere decir que sean malas personas, simplemente que son humanos con sentimientos complejos. Hay tantas escenas en esta película que son excelentes, de hecho cada escena estuvo tan bien ejecutada que me cuesta decidir en unos cuantos. Por ejemplo la relación entre Amelia y Laura, y la complicidad que tienen fue excelente. También todas las escenas donde aparecen Laura y Andrew, especialmente donde terminan acostándose juntos, y Andrew se prueba los famosos pantalones negros y por último la ´última escena donde Andrew comparte con su padre que sufre de Alzheimer.Toda la película fruyó tan bien y tiene pequeñas gemas dentro del diálogo. Todas las interacciones son tan naturales, y me tocó en un momento particular en la vida donde me siento especialmente identificada con Laura, que a pesar de sus dificultades, logra salir adelante con su humor y franqueza.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Sobre las dificultades de hacerse adulto. Sobre las particularidades de la amistad entre mujeres. Sobre cómo inevitablemente nos comparamos con otros. Sobre romances que no funcionan pero se transforman en otra cosa. De esto versa principalmente la excelente Walking and Talking, que sigue la vida de dos amigas de infancia abriéndose paso a una vida adulta y lidiando con que aquello no las distancie. Una película sin estridencias, de tono grato y optimista, que cuando es cómica no te subraya los chiste y que cuando es dramática no te empuja a que te pongas a llorar.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/20/23
Full Review
Audience Member
it has its moments of great dialogue but overall in my opinion it was not that good.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/09/23
Full Review
Audience Member
While it isn't quite Nicole Holofcener's most fine-tuned work, "Walking and Talking" is still a lovely, sweet film that benefits from strong writing and charismatic performances.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/13/23
Full Review
Read all reviews
>
