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Joseph Gordon-Levitt (he of television’s 3rd Rock From The Sun) has turned into an intense actor. Reference his performance in The Lookout as Chris, a young man who suffered brain damage in an auto accident and now tries to pull his life together. Chris has short-term memory loss and keeps a notebook to help him remember what to do. Things we take for granted---such as get up in the morning, shower, eat breakfast---have to be written down in sequence for Chris because he doesn’t remember what to do. Director/scriptwriter Scott Frank draws a finely-honed picture of a person who has lost much and knows it. All this against the bleak winter background of Kansas (OK, actually shot in Manitoba). In this film, Chris has to come to momentous decisions and in a hurry.

As the story unfolds, we follow Chris through his day and friendship with a blind man, Jeff Daniels. Chris has a dead end job as the evening janitor in a small town bank. Daniels is a fairly good cook and tries to teach Chris, but there are times when Chris is alone that all is for naught, as he can’t figure out what a can opener is or what it can do. Chris, you see, was driving a car four years ago and turned out the headlights so he and his friends could see butterflies at night. Trouble is, there were other vehicles on the road and poof, people dead and maimed. Chris’s father (Bruce McGill) tolerates him; his sister is married and doesn’t have time, so Chris is pretty much alone. Enter Gary (Matthew Goode) who comes on to Chris like a shark in a minnow tank. You know something is up, but what? Well, the local bank for one thing and gullible Chris is caught, hook, line and sinker. Gary dangles sex in front of Chris (Isla Fisher). Now, Chris is firmly caught, but you know that old saying, “…the best laid plans…” well, it happens here and with surprising twists and turns. Nothing is quite as it seems.

The Lookout has a gritty look to it from dimly lit bars to dirt and snow fields to Lewis’s grungy apartment.  There is not one, but two Thanksgiving dinners and neither one is a delight. The people around Chris treat him kindly, but he doesn’t see this, only that they may feel sorry for him. What I didn’t understand, though, is that with a head injury like the one Chris has, why is he still allowed to drive a car? When you start out from home, would you forget where you are going?

Joseph Gordon-Levitt conveys the lost look of Chris quite well. There is a vacancy about him that is haunting. Jeff Daniels, as Lewis, is upbeat and cynical. His humor is cutting, but he senses when things aren’t what they should be and tries to protect Chris. Bruce McGill,could play the father role in his sleep. He is bombastic and sarcastic at the same time. A man without a clue on how to cope with his son. Isla Fisher as the girl who comes on to Chris, ends up really liking him, but fear is also part of her life. Her discussion with Lewis one evening is telling for both actors. Matthew Goode as Gary is sleaze personified. His type are a dime a dozen and unfortunately, are wreckers wherever they go. This group of people comes together one winter as they plot something devious and need a “lookout.” Chris is it, but perhaps, the group should have been warned to “look out,” instead. A much better than average film.

Copyright 2007 Marie Asner
Submitted 4/4/07