The Pallbearer

Starring:David Schwimmer, Gwyneth Paltrow, Barbara Hershey, Michael Rapaport, Toni Collette
Directed by:Matt Reeves
Rating:PG-13
Genre:Comedy, Romance
1996

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary:Loser Tom Thompson(David Schwimmer) receives a call from the mother (Barbara Hershey) of a "friend" from high school, reporting the bad news that the friend has died. The problem is that Tom has no recollection of the friend. He plays along as if he remembers him, and gets roped into serving as a pallbearer in the funeral. At the same time, Tom is amazed to discover Julie DeMarco (Gwyneth Paltrow), the biggest crush of his high school career. However, things take a turn for the worst when he begins a sexual relationship with his dead "friend's" mother. Now, his life is falling apart and he could lose the one chance to get the girl of his dreams.

Review:

Tim: I'll start on a semi positive note. I like the casting of David Schwimmer as the lead character, because the character is a nice guy but also a huge loser. I can really see Schwimmer in this role. I also like the casting of Gwyneth Paltrow as the unachievable woman of his dreams, because this, too, is realistic to me.

The movie fails in a number of senses, but the one that sticks out the most to me is how difficult it is to sympathize with Schwimmer's character. He is not a good person, and as mentioned above, a completely loser. He gets himself into horrible situations and deserves the worst that happens to him. I can't feel sorry for a man who makes his own trouble and then wonders why he has such a horrible life.

Besides this flaw, The Pallbearer is supposedly a comedy, but in many ways has more qualities of a drama, since the film is not funny in the least. It is a lot darker than it may first appear to be.

I know I am harping on "losers," but this movie really is a film about losers. All of the characters here are losers in one way or another (I suppose you could say have real flaws, but I prefer my term).

The one saving grace in this otherwise dismal film is Paltrow. The biggest problem with her is that she doesn't get enough screen time. We have to be subjected to Schwimmer constantly, while Paltrow floats in and out at various times.

In the end, The Pallbearer is an unfunny, uninteresting mess of a romantic comedy and should be avoided at all costs. In general, the previous statement works for David Schwimmer's career as well (just take out the stuff about the Rom-Com.)

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Graduate, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Shakespeare in Love, Sliding Doors