Hillbilly Elegy (2020)

Oscars are definitely no strangers to drama films attempting to present themselves as candidates for their categories. Pandering to them as something meaningful in marketing campaign that boasts a talented awards nominated cast of actors, well-known directors, and common subject matter that will connect with those critics (such as biopics, anything about Hollywood, period dramas, political messages, etc.). This brings us to a new project, Hillbilly Elegy, which was directed by Ron Howard, written by Christina Taylor, and based on 2016 memoir of the same name by JD Vance. The marketing campaign for this felt like a normal Oscar bait attempt with the choice of music and editing. It was released on Netflix but divided critics and audiences with the former criticizing its problems while the latter being more favorable. I watched it to see what was causing the polarized response and ended up being flabbergasted by the filmmaking decisions. 

What's it about? The story follows a college student reflecting on his teenage days living with his Ohio family whose disfunction is caused by his drug addict mother. On paper, this can open some opportunities to explore if it can explore relationship dynamics (if they were done effectively in the memoir being adapted). There are some nice scenes in the final third that show how close it was to reaching that potential. 

Unfortunately, it squanders its chance to make its serious material land impact in the directorial execution and screenplay. The overacting in important moments removes the dramatic impact and makes the experience feel like a silly Lifetime flick trying to to be an Oscar hopeful. Because of how often the movie jumps back and forth between the past and present, the pacing feels rough with the result making it feel longer than it actually is. With how repetitive the antics of the mother gets, it feels like it's padding out the runtime. Nothing feels fleshed out and by the time it does feel like it has some kind of groove in the final third, it rushes through just to finish its own plot. Even the dialogue ends up being goofy and badly directed in the delivery (it should have been better fleshed out in some miniseries instead of a movie). By the end of it, there isn't much investment in these one dimensional characters after all is said and done.

 

How are the actors? In regards to story importance, the actors to focus on are Amy Adams, Gabriel Basso and Owen Asztalos. For an important role in the story, Amy is directed into overacting the mental instabilities to the point where it becomes tedious melodrama that's trying too hard for an Oscar attempt (which is saying something for Amy's track record). Gabriel is very limited and stiff in the present day version of the central protagonist, though that can also be contributed to how little he's given to work with. Owen fairs a tiny bit better than Basso but he's not good enough to elevate the material. Honorable mention goes to Glenn Close for making the most out of her supportive role that's abundant with goofy lines, convincing makeup, and a genuine effort (despite how rushed it gets with her). 

 

Overall Consensus: Hillbilly Elegy falters itself in trying to have a meaningful experience with a problematic screenplay, uninteresting characters, bad directing, unintentional silly execution, and inconsistent acting. ⭑⭑1/4 Runtime: 1 hour 55 minutes R

 

Reasons to watch it: You are a fan of the aforementioned actors and/or director Ron Howard. You have read the memoir this is adapting and want to see how it's handled. You want to see something that makes serious parts looks unintentionally funny. 

 

Reasons to avoid it: You aren't a fan of the aforementioned actors and/or director Ron Howard. You have read the memoir this is adapting but don't want to see how it's handled. You don't want to see something that makes serious parts looks unintentionally funny. You want arcs regarding drug addiction and mental instability handled respectfully. You aren't in the mood for an Oscar bait attempt ending up as a sappy lowly Lifetime Original movie.