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BIG BAD LOVE Send This Review to a Friend
This is certainly a labor of love by Debra Winger as producer and her husband Arliss Howard, who has directed "Big Bad Love" from a screenplay that he wrote with his brother James Howard based on a short story collection by Larry Brown. Director Howard also stars as the male lead with Winger playing his ex-wife. Set in Mississippi, the film peers into the life of a frustrated writer, Leon Barlow (Howard), whose manuscripts are returned from publishers in a steady flow. The film also examines the lives of assorted characters swirling around the protagonist.
None of the film's characters is especially interesting and it is hard to be sympathetic about the problems they endure. Furthermore, the film is exasperatingly arty, sometimes scoring with a nice visual idea, but too often marked by cuts and flashbacks that can leave the viewer in a whirl. There seems to be a determination to show how brilliant the director is and how deep the material is. But it's a case of overkill despite the talent on display.
In addition to being frustrated as a writer, booze-soaked Barlow has suffered from other problems, including a daughter with an incurable illness, a troublesome mother (Angie Dickinson) and his problematical friend and wartime buddy Monroe (Paul Le Mat). Also in the picture is Rosanna Arquette as Monroe's girlfriend Velma. There's little reason to care much about anyone, including Barlow, who is as self-absorbed in the film as its director is self-indulgent.
The performances do ring true to the material and I can admire the effort to depict the pain of creativity and just plain living, but these are not characters with whom I want to spend much time and the frills and flourishes don't make them any more appealing. An IFC Films release.
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