Waitress

Starring: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Jeremy Sisto, Cheryl Hines, Andy Griffith, Adrienne Shelly, Eddie Jemison
Directed by: Adrienne Shelly
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
2007

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A waitress (Keri Russell) in an unhappy marriage with her husband (Jeremy Sisto) is devestated to learn she's pregnant. She begins an affair with her doctor (Nathan Fillion) and worries she's losing her life to unhappiness when all she really wants to do is bake pies.

Review:

Tim: This is an odd little movie. It sets out to be both a drama and a comedy. There are some legitimately funny moments, but underneath, this is a very sad movie as well. I felt a wide array of emotions as I watched. This is perhaps the film’s best quality- it evokes emotions in the audience. How exactly it does this is a bit of a mystery, but it works better than it probably should.

At the heart of this movie is the dysfunctional marriage and frequent unhappiness of our titular waitress. Keri Russell is terrific in this role. She’s believable as a waitress and also as a woman who has almost completely given up on happiness. I tend to be a bit harsh on Russell, but her performance here leaves me with nothing but praise. She’s very, very good. This movie is all about her, but what I wasn’t prepared for is how awful her marriage comes across on screen. This is very, very sad, even more sad because there are thousands of women out there stuck in relationships like this. Here, I have to mention Jeremy Sisto as her husband. He is such a horrible louse, and gives such a heartless performance that you absolutely hate him. He’s spectacular in his ability to portray a coward with no ability to focus on anyone but himself. He is completely believable in this role, which makes the movie work. Some of these scenes are a bit hard to watch because your heart just goes out to Russell’s character. Their dynamic is amazing.

Nathan Fillion gives an odd performance. At first, I just shook my head, not knowing what to make of him. However, he gets better as the film goes on, and eventually, you have to respect him for giving a fairly good performance. You could probably have found a better actor to give a better performance, but I’m not sure it would have been right for this movie. Andy Griffith, of all people, also has a terrific small supporting role. Like most of the characters here, you’re not entirely sure you like him, but you have to give him credit for such a layered performance. The whole cast give terrifically memorable performances.

Without getting into any spoilers, I absolutely loved how the movie finally comes together in the end. There is some level of resolution, and the fashion in which it’s done is impressive. The scene in the hospital could have been ridiculous and silly. However, it comes across as completely believable, and surprisingly powerful. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and couldn’t have come up with a better ending.

I usually do this with movies I like but were flawed (save my negative comments for right before the end)-- Waitress does have some weaknesses. It really is a quirky, different movie (which is a strength) but at times it feels like it gets too smug and conscious of its own quirkiness. Several parts of the movie needed to be more straightforward, and less of a set-up for more oddball hilarity to ensue. Still, I found myself enjoying this movie, and surprised that I felt empathy for the characters while also laughing at their situations. While this movie is far from perfect, it is a nice little movie that works on multiple levels. I recommend it.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



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