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Israel has unfortunately been much in the news lately, but even as our thoughts turn to that region of the world, we rarely remember that most people are just trying to lead normal lives. Broken Wings, an accessible family drama from director Nir Bergman, is a helpful reminder. It stars Orly Banai as Dafna, a middle-aged woman whose husband unexpectedly died nine months before. She's still in a state of shock, as are her four children. But they're all grieving in different ways. Dafna sleepwalks through her days, older son Yair has dropped out of high school, younger son Ido has taken to filming himself jumping from high places, and young daughter Bahr refuses to go to class unless her mother can take her. Dealing with all of this family chaos is our protagonist Maya (Maya Maron), a teenager herself but a young woman forced into the role of surrogate mother. That's not a role she gladly accepts, however, and when tragedy strikes the family yet again, Maya sets off on her own.

Bergman, who both wrote and directed Broken Wings, has a sure hand for the dynamics of the single-parent household: the love that exists but also the frustrations and resentments that build. He also has a nice way with the various child actors, all of whom give solid performances. Unfortunately, the movie gets a bit much after a while. There's a little too much tragedy, and the ending is correspondingly a little too contrived. It almost feels as if Bergman is trying to show that there are solutions to any problem, and we all know that's false.

Still, there's much to enjoy in Broken Wings, and it should go over big with people who appreciate accessible arthouse fare. It opens this Friday.  

Jersey Girl is, surprisingly, an even better film about a family. It's surprising because writer and director Kevin Smith is known more for drug and fart jokes in movies like Clerks and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Nor has Ben Affleck proven himself a reliable guide of quality. And yet these two along with George Carlin, Liv Tyler, cutesy child star Racquel Castro, and Jennifer Lopez have given us the first wonderful Hollywood drama of the year.

Ben Affleck stars as Ollie Trinke (an unfortunate name, yes) who's a powerful music publicist living in Manhattan. He has a beautiful girlfriend (J-Lo), a loyal assistant (Jason Biggs), and enough money to enjoy the city. And when his girlfriend gets pregnant, he's ready to tie the knot. Catastrophe strikes, though, when she dies in childbirth, and Ollie is left to raise his little daughter, Gertie (Castro). He tries to get his father Bart (Carlin) to take over the paternal duties, but his dad realizes this is something Ollie needs to do. A particularly disastrous episode at a press conference, however, leads to Ollie losing his job and being forced to move in with his dad in New Jersey.

This is not exactly a novel or promising set-up: single dad moving back home to live with cranky grandfather. Yet, Kevin Smith tells this sentimental tale with grace and a marvelous attention to character. Most of the film takes place when Gertie is seven, and of course she's a precocious first grader. But her relationship with her dad is sweet and believable. She loves to sit beside him as he drives the street sweeper (Ollie's new job) around the city streets. She tries to interfere with his not-so-exciting dating life. And when he thinks of moving back to Manhattan, she stubbornly and impetuously resists.

While the question of whether they'll move back to the city forms one conflict, it's thankfully not the primary one. Rather, Jersey Girl focuses on a man trying to find a sense of his place in this world. What does it mean to be a single dad with a crappy job still living at home with your pop? Can you still consider yourself a success? Fortunately, the movie doesn't condescend like so many Hollywood flicks, trying to convince us regular folk that we're the lucky ones. Instead, it simply presents a man with wonderful family and friends, and reminds us that there's more to life than a big house and flashy career.

Helping enormously in this endeavor are the aforementioned family and friends. George Carlin delivers a strong performance as a cantankerous but lovable grandfather. Liv Tyler arrives as a grad student/video store clerk who pursues Ollie almost of pity, but their burgeoning relationship strikes just the right note. And Jennifer Lopez has a genuinely marvelous cameo, reminding us that for all her irritable publicity, she sure has charisma.

Let me also restate what I've said in this column before--Ben Affleck is a fine actor who needs to do a better job of choosing roles. Ben, pick 'em like this one and not like Daredevil or Gigli. When he just has to act natural and not put on the big action star performance, he's really quite good. His charming relationship with on-screen daughter Gertie has so many nice moments. I especially liked the scenes when the two interrogate each other over their "intentions." You'll know what I mean when you see it.

Kevin Smith has always had a gifted way with words. Fortunately, he's able to apply that to a script that's short on the strong profanity and long on interesting dialogue. And with cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond (Close Encounters of the Third Kind) behind the camera, Jersey Girl looks better than any other Smith pic. I wish there weren't so many musical montage sequences, and the movie features an irritating (and unnecessary) standing ovation near the end, but those are small quibbles. Hollywood hasn't given us many reasons to go to the movies lately. Jersey Girl is one.  

J. Robert Parks  3/28/2004

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