Mozart and the Whale (2005) 10/10
Donald (Josh Hartnett) has Asperger’s Syndrome. He runs a group for other people with Asperger’s, austism, and other socially-isolating disorders. When Isabelle (Radha Mitchell) joins the group, a tentative romance begins.
I see a fair number of movies. And most of them are good, because I’m picky and I read reviews and I have no taste for “so bad it’s good.” I see many movies I like, admire, and recommend. But I don’t fall in love all that often. I don’t often say, “Oh, my,” with stars in my eyes after seeing a movie, and that’s what happened with Mozart and the Whale.
So I saw this movie with my son, and he has Asperger’s, and that kind of colors everything, doesn’t it? I mean, I rearranged my Netflix when he came home from college so that there were movies we would want to see together. But this could all have backfired. Because Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is a part of Asperger’s, not getting it right can be painful, and any sense of humor about sensitive subjects is right out, and overall, I was fully prepared for him to run out of the room. (As an aside, the movie opens with the unusual disclaimer, “This movie is a work of fiction based on a true story.” Most movies use a shorter “based on a true story” statement, and I am 100% certain that the longer version was needed to appease the OCD of Aspies being depicted.)
So where was I? Right, run screaming. He didn’t. He loved it. It may be his new favorite movie (except he has a whole OCD thing about calling things his favorite). He declared Isabelle “my perfect woman.” He related to the characters, who were not cute or pretty or comic relief fodder or disgusting or charming or inspiring or heroic or any of the other things that we expect to happen to real people when they become movie characters. In fact, the only way Donald and Isabelle were movied-up is that they were played by breathtakingly pretty people.
The whole thing works. The supporting cast (including Rusty Schwimmer, Gary Cole, and John Carroll Lynch) do the job. The filming is understated and warm. The cinematography and set decoration work to convey these people and how they place themselves in the world. The love story is unbelievably touching. And the sum total is that you feel enriched just to have watched it. Just to have been there, witnessing the act of loneliness being eased by love.
Just see it, ‘kay?
“Mozart and the Whale” is based on the life of Jerry Newport – he is fairly pleased with the way it was presented in the movie. He posts on IMDb as wholphin48, and defends the movie regularly on its message board. I have seen him speak several times, including at a screening of the movie, and I think Hartnett did a pretty good job of portraying him (albeit quite a few years younger than he now is). I asked him if the “real” Isabelle’s laugh was anything like the one in the movie, and he replied that in real life it was much louder and more piercing… and on another occasion when I saw them speak together, he is right.
While the movie leaves out certain things (her children from a previous relationship), it does a good job of portraying their relationship and their personalities.
Unfortunately it appears that the studio took control away from the director for final cut, and Josh Hartnett was not pleased with the final product. He declined to promote the film, and it had a very limited foreign release and was never released theatrically in the U.S.
There’s an audio interview with Hartnett about the movie at http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/images/column/72507/hartnetttalk.mp3
And in an aside, for anyone who has a child with ASD, I highly recommend Jerry Newport’s book “Your Life is NOT a Label”. It is a clearly written book aimed at adolescents. Endplug.
Thanks for the extra information. Arthur fell in love with Isabelle in the movie, and with her laugh, which is much like his own. I sent him a clip from the 60 Minutes story on Jerry and Mary. I find them charming, but I didn’t know about the book.
Jerry and Mary wrote a book, also titled “Mozart and the Whale” to tell the real story that the movie was based on. For those who are sticklers for the details (huh… we don’t know any of *them*….) the book was written after the movie, so the movie is not taken from the book.
Jerry grew up in Islip, the son of two teachers, and has the classic restraint you would expect from someone with AS who came up in that environment. Mary (Isabelle) is a free spirit who reminds me of a 60’s era flower child. The interaction between them is a sheer delight, with Jerry being the linear talker who explains everything in exquisite detail, and Mary inserting random almost non-sequitur interjections that make him stop for a second.. you can almost see him shaking his head to clear it and get back on track. But the love between them is almost palpable, and their pride in each others accomplishments is obvious.
just saw the movie for the first time March 1st on Showtime and loved it.
Can you please elaborate on this:
Jerry and Mary wrote a book, also titled “Mozart and the Whale” to tell the real story that the movie was based on. For those who are sticklers for the details (huh… we don’t know any of *them*….) the book was written after the movie, so the movie is not taken from the book.
thank you.