Sometimes a great movie

Its been a terrible time in some ways. Mainly because work has kept me away from things I would much rather be doing. I havent seen any movies for like a couple of months probably, havent spent as much time with the family as I would have liked to, have been carrying around a bunch of great rock songs in my USB drive, but barely get the chance to listen to them, I have been reading some interesting stuff but have not been able to give it enough time. All that whining is basically pointing towards the fact that corporate imprisonment is taking its toll. I'm sick of it.

So last night, when I caught sight of Paul Giamatti while flicking channels, I thought what the heck, take some time and lets look into this. Giamatti is a good actor, and I thought maybe the movie has some potential. And it seemed funny in a quirky way, which always gets me.

So I watched, even waited through the long commercial breaks filled with those irritating weight-loss gimmicks which all claim to be the next best thing since iPod shuffles. The movie captivated me, primarily through the sincere performances, the mix of wistful humour and an underlying sensitivity towards the issues it was trying to tackle and of course, the great music.

Its called "Duets" and is basically a road movie, with a bunch of people travelling across the US to Omaha, Nebraska to participate in a Karaoke contest. Along the way, there is a lot of singing, a lot of black humour and lots of stuff going on.

Paul Giamatti (most recently in "The Lady in the Lake" unfortunately, better known for "American Splendour" and "Sideways") is as salesman who has become frustrated with his life. He tells his wife he is going out for a pack of ciggarettes and ends up taking a road trip with no destination in mind. He happens to stop at a karaoke bar, where a rather flaky girl inspires him with a lot of encouragement and a couple of lil blue pills to get on the stage and sing. When he wins the contest that day, he finds a new interest in life and wants to pursue it by contesting the big Karaoke contest in Omaha.

Besides Paul, the movie stars Huey Lewis (yes, the singer of the "Power of Love") as a Karaoke con-artist. He is suddenly confronted by his estranged daughter played by Gwyneth Paltrow who herself does some wonderful singing. The daughter wants to spend some time with her dad, and thats another sub-plot running through the movie.

The most interesting bit of the interlocking stories is that of an escaped black convict named Reggie (played very well by Andre Braugher). In one scene, as he hitch-hikes through america, he sticks-up the trucker who has just given him a ride. The trucker says "Learn a trade son, dont do this" and Reggie's anguished expression when he says "I did. This is it!" is remarkable.

Reggie has lived most of his life in prison. He never even learnt to drive a car before he was put in prison. The movie does not delve into the past, but shows Reggie's anguish at a lost life very well. Andre Braugher has been seen in quite a few character roles and is a recognizable face, but maybe not as much as he should be. When he meets up with Paul Giamatti, and though originally his intention is to rob him too, they become friends. There is a poignancy in their friendship as they both come to a deep understanding of what each is going through. They also join up and produce some of the best karaoke numbers ever.

And the music in the movie is just plain lovely. From Gwyneth Paltrow's surprisingly soulful rendition of "Betty Davis Eyes" to Andre Braugher and Paul's duet of "Try a little tenderness" and culminating in a fantastic rendition by Andre of "Free Bird", the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic. Just loved it.

Duets is not a classic, not a movie which will perhaps be remembered through time. But I will remember it for a while, for its music and Paul and Andre's performances.