Mobile
Friday, July 9, 2010
Film / Film Reviews / News Cyrus worth getting to know
Posted By Matt Brunson on Fri, Jul 9, 2010 at 12:20 PM
By Matt Brunson
CYRUS
DIRECTED BY Jay Duplass & Mark Duplass
STARS John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill
The laughs don't always come easy — but, oh, they do come — in Cyrus, a dark comedy that repeatedly dances so close to uncomfortable territory that viewers figure it's only a matter of time before it topples right over into the taboo.
John C. Reilly, often cast as amiable if off-putting losers, plays another one, but the twist is that here, his character ends up seeming well-adjusted when compared to the title player. Reilly's John, long divorced from a more sensible person (Catherine Keener) who nevertheless has remained his friend, is depressed by his unwanted solitude and reluctantly attends a party to meet people. He hits it off with the sweet Molly (Marisa Tomei), and it looks like the start of something special. But John soon comes to discover that Molly lives with her 21-year-old son Cyrus (Jonah Hill), and the dynamics between mother and son — these two seem really close — make John uneasy. But neither he nor Molly want to mess up a good thing, so they work on building a lasting union — one that the dependent and jealous Cyrus will do anything to sabotage.
The vicious feud between John and Cyrus provides the movie with much of its black-hearted humor, and the suspense over the depths of the parent-child bond supplies the unease. Yet for all its edginess, this isn't a cruel comedy by any means. Instead, it's as much a sympathetic study of lonely souls striving to make (or keep) connections, and Tomei, Reilly and even the limited Hill (who's perfectly cast here) all deliver raw performances that help us understand their behavior. The biggest surprise regarding Cyrus, then, is that it's ultimately as sweet as it is sour.
Speaking of...
-
Computer Science And Photography – Matthew Mills a Photographer in NYC Explains This Unlikely Pairing
Nov 22, 2020 -
Imagicomm Entertainment to Make Blue Ridge Available on Multiple Platforms
Oct 15, 2020 -
The Moffett Restaurant Group Celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Barrington’s Restaurant
Oct 12, 2020 - More »
Latest in The CLog
More by Matt Brunson
-
Fanning flames of expectation
Apr 26, 2019 -
That burning sensation
Apr 19, 2019 -
Gentle giant
Apr 19, 2019 - More »
-
Veterans Day deals
Veterans Day: Creative Loafing says "thank you." Other companies give you discounts.
-
Why do people hate Dave Matthews? 82
I can't seem to find a reasonable answer for why DMB draws so much ire.
-
Question the Queen City: The unsolved death of Delette Nycum 2
The trial that followed was nothing short of a Charlotte version of the O.J. Simpson spectacle.
