An insightful glimpse into parenthood and fame.
Len and Company
Grade: A-
Director: Tim Godsall
Screenplay: Goodsall, Katherine Knight
Cast: Rhys Ifans (Madame Bovary), Jack Kilmer (The Nice Guys)
Rating: NR
Runtime: 1hr 42 min
by John DeSando
Although this unassuming story about a rock star turned producer turned recluse proceeds at a somewhat leisurely pace, underneath the exchanges among rocker father, Len (Rhys Ifans), son Max (Jack Kilmer), and rock singer Zoe (June Temple) is discord that can’t be quieted. It’s a strong story about parents and mentoring that refuses to be bland.
The only unsurprising element is the lack of communication between father and son, who’s blamelessly trying to get his father’s checked-out attention, albeit fulfilling his father’s jaded prediction that everyone wants something by trying to get his producer-father to listen to his band’s demo. Around the current Father’s Day, the dysfunction is not a surprise for any of us who want better communications with our children.
Len’s protégé, Zoe, asks nothing more than to see him in his remote digs, and while she has the typical drug problem of many rockers, she bonds with Max and makes small inroads into Len’s wall of silence.
Besides being a good story of dysfunction, Len and Company gives a non-strident critique of the isolating nature of success. No better example than when Len visits his young friend, William (Keir Gilchrist), at his class to talk about his business. The colorful language and racy stories leave the school kids and teacher stunned, but there is freshness in his lecture that could be beneficial to their future.
Therein lies the irony of the story, a remote rocker exiled from the world but still capable of moving even the youngest in an audience.
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts WCBE’s It’s Movie Time and co-hosts Cinema Classics. Contact him at JDeSando@Columbus.rr.com
