A very engaging and civilized comedy that combines a great story with spirited acting and an undercurrent of criticism about the brave new world of medicine
New director Sophie Barthes hits the jackpot with this simmering piece of understated comedy starring the king of understated comedy Paul Giamatti. Barthes scores a hat trick with a great screenplay in addition to the fantastic talent and very good direction. This combination makes this a summer comedy with a message that is not to be missed. “Cold Souls” is a 2009 Sundance Film Festival Nominee for the Grand Jury Prize in the Dramatic Film category.
Paul Giamatti is best known for his Oscar nominated and Golden Globe winning performances in Cinderella Man (2005), the TV special "John Adams" (2008) and the film that made pinot noir famous, “Sideways” in 2004. In this film he is an actor struggling with his interpretation of “Uncle Vania” for which he is playing the lead character. Laden with feelings of impending failure coupled with a monumental case of actor’s block Paul is ready to throw in the towel. In his search for relief he hears about a new medical procedure that provides the ultimate artistic respite. The procedure removes the soul and puts it in cold storage for awhile while the erstwhile owner recuperates and recharges his batteries in the warmth of unfeeling contentment. Ignorance is bliss and this is the best bliss going.
Enter David Strathairn playing the good Dr. Flintstein, the medical genius behind the painless soul removal and storage process. Without question one of Strathairn’s meatiest roles to date, he gets to play not only the mad scientist (or is it the Mad Hatter) villain but he gets to play the villain without a clue. From what we see he is only marginally aware of what he is doing. Yet the hapless Paul has no choice but to go along with the pan. After all, Flintstein is a doctor, isn’t he? Don’t doctors know what is best? Well, much of the time they do.
After the operation in which Paul’s chick pea sized soul is extracted he goes back to work only to find out that his acting has been reduced to the level of emotion displayed by men wearing sandwich boards and giving out coupons for stand-up comedy. Dismayed and having learned his lesson he rushes back to get his soul out of pawn only to find out some very distressing news. “Don’t worry, we’ll find it,” assures Flintstein with the sincerity of an auto mechanic looking for an electrical problem and being paid by the hour.
What follows is a hilarious trip to Russia and an investigation into the deepest secrets of the illicit soul market including the woman whose less than faithful husband told a slight fib about the actual soul she received. Simply a very funny story coupled with great execution by Sophie Barthes not to mention the expected superlative comedic performance (with soul) by Paul Giamatti.
Cold Souls is a film with a great concept. The message of bio-corporate meddling is timely and fits right in with genetic engineering, DNA scans and the other neo-Frankenstein technologies that are bombarding us every day and threatening our souls (the only things we have left that don't require battery power).
Having said that, the film would have been better with less Giamatti and more plot development from the other characters. Nobody will say he isn't great; but this is a very funny concept and much more could have been made of other aspects of the plot. For example, the lie to the woman who was told she had been given a soul with a much higher star rating; maybe she could have been offered something from Tom Cruise as a compromise? Or the bust of the soul lab---could it have been caused by the mistaken sending of Cheney's soul to Kim Jong-il, precipitating the last string of missile tests?
In any event, a very clever film but a little too much of a one-man show by Giamatti. One of David Strathairn's funniest performances backed up with great work from Dina Korzun and Emily Watson. More from writer director Barthes!
Directed and Written by: Sophie Barthes
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Dina Korzun, Emily Watson and David Strathairn
Release: August 7, 2009
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