REALITY BITES
1994 -- PG-13 -- 99 mins
Directed by Ben Stiller. Written by Helen Childress.
Winona Ryder: Lelaina Pierce
Ethan Hawke: Troy Dyer
Ben Stiller: Michael Grates
Janeane: Vickie Miner
Steve Zahn: Sammy Gray
Swoosie Kurtz: Charlane McGregor
Joe Don Baker: Tom Pierce
John Mahoney: Grant Gubler
Renee Zellweger: Tami
Andy Dick: Rock
David Spade: Fast Food Manager
Keith David:
Roger
Anne Meara: Louise
Helen Childress: Waitress
Karen Duffy: "Elaina"
Jeanne Tripplehorn: Cheryl
Goode
"Evian is naive spelled backwards"
PLOT SYNOPSIS:
Lelaina is one of a several recent college grads. She lives with her best friend Vicki and works at a local television station for a jerk talk show host. And she's put together a home movie about herself and her circle of friends. One day Lelaina runs into a young cable TV executive named Michael, who suggests he turn her documentary into a project for his channel. As Michael and Lelaina become romantically involved, her grungy friend Troy begins to disapprove of the way her lifes heading. But Troy actually loves her, and soon she has to come to several important decisions about herself and her documentary.
JANEANES CHARACTER:
Reality Bites gave Janeane her first true movie acting role. Vicki is something of a hardass. She's tough, independant and cynical, and (gulp) works as a manager of a local GAP store. Yet she also projects warmth and charm. Towards the end of the movie, Vicki allows Janeane to show a greater depth as the character goes through an AIDS scare, and the actress delivers the goods. Her character being a fan of 70s culture, Janeane sports a very uncharacteristic retro look in Reality Bites, and it's a nice change.
MY REVIEW:
**1/2
Stiller's motion picture directing debut is an entertaining piece of work, even if it never quite knows exactly what it is. Promoted as a realistic "Generation X" tale, it does cover the topic well enough, capturing attitudes, fashion, and music. The aimlessness of youth is captured quiet well, with characters stuck in low paying jobs they hate, or, in Hawk's case, none at all. The lack of motivation is not only a part of some of the characters, it also defines them. They're intelligent and generally decent, but are somewhat resentful of society and what it expects from them. This is an interesting approach to a comedy, and does provide some honest insight to the target insight, but it also makes the film rather across as down right whiny.
Considering the publicity for the film was built on the Gen-X concept, it's surprising that director Stiller goes off onto such a obvious and predictable path in the final half hour. It becomes another generic romantic comedy with a love triangle plot. It's a shame that it does go this way, as it leads to a rushed and uninspired resolution. It's not that's it's not satisfying, because if you feel for the characters, it does work. But it could have been something fresh, which it is simply isn't.
The cast is what makes the material work. Ryder is wonderful and appealing as always, and perfectly cast. Her sweet, tom boyish-yet attractive look is just right for the movie. From the first time you see her as Leilaina, you want her to succeed in every way. Stiller casts himself as the yuppie Michael, a role that requires him to be both endearing and a bit of a tool. The relationship between he and Leilaina just doesn't seem meant to be, but Stiller's effortless charm makes it easy to root for him. Which is more than get be said for Hawk's Troy. This character comes off as a jerk throughout the whole film, despite some elements that provoke sympathy. But his smug and self-righteous attitude is a total turn off. Some comments towards Leilaina are just plain cruel, while his dislike for Michael is completely unfair. I like Hawk the actor in stuff like Training Day, but he's stuck playing an asshole here...and he's the leading man. Zahn, who's gone on to be a very reliable and likable performer in a number of roles, doesn't get to contribute much here. As their closeted friend, he's good and understated, but it's a shame he didn't get more to work with. The supporting cast is top notch, right down to the brief cameos.
Reality Bites is a film with good performances, sharp dialogue and fun set pieces (such as the memorably cute dance number set to My Sharona in a 7-11), but it ultimately doesn't come together as a whole. Nice try, though, and a pretty good directorial debut for Ben Stiller.
VIDEOCAPTURES
