It was good to see a movie that, albeit deeply flawed, wasn’t trying to reconcile scoring political points with box office success, as in ‘Munich’, Good Night and Good Luck’ and ‘Syriana’, in ascending order of awfulness.

The Weather Man was a sombre comedy of midlife crisis in the genre of ‘Broken Flowers’ and ‘Sideways’- some of the two-shots with Nicolas Cage and Michael Caine sitting side by side seem a cinematic quote – but in this film Cage plays the eponymous hero, David Splitz, beset by family problems whilst trying for a career change .With Hope David playing his estranged wife, there are some serious acting plaudits, the best scene reserved for last, a movingly understated ‘ life –advice ‘ conversation between father and son where Caine and Cage come head to head and the former almost acts the latter out of the car.

At other times Cage manages the ruminative voiceover commentary with the correct deadpan delivery, as he tries to explain his motivations to us as much as to himself, although that doesn’t stop him sorting his problems the good old Hollywood way – with a well-aimed punch- 'Take that, you wife-stealers and/or paedophiles'. Incidentally, David tries to explain to the probationary officer that his son ‘looks older than he is’ – a Hollywood gesture to avoid offending older gays, I suppose, which strikes oddly with British viewers who would assume the counsellor must know very well the age of his client.

The cinematography is the best thing about the film, right from the opening shot which pans from a heaving mass of overlapping ice scales up to the Chicago skyline. Scenes such as the studio where David has to gesture to an empty screen, or the range with the shot-damaged wooden deer where he introduces his reluctant overweight daughter to archery, even the ‘Pretty Woman’ department-store makeover, are interesting. Others, like the ‘living funeral’, the pointlessly drawn out marriage therapy scene and the final New York Parade are overdone and banal.

The running conceit of an angry public lobbing the occasional fast food item at him becomes tedious, as does David’s resentment at being recognised in queues, etc.

Two more successful metaphors run through the film – David’s inability to forecast the weather – he is only a presenter - reflects his helplessness in his personal life, whilst his growing competence at archery signals the hope that he will be able to improve. These help make up for some excruciating scenes with his children, which, in the case of the overweight girl in particular, are unbelievably crude. Initially it seems Cage will cash in on his success as slob dad in ‘Matchstick Men’, but here it doesn’t work.

We can say David learns nothing in the course of the film, unless he takes on board his dad’s ‘Nobody said being an adult isn’t difficult.’, whose motto-card sentiment is in line with the rest of the uninspired scriptwriting. The signs are that he doesn’t –the rosy ending looks as easy-come-by as his studio job at the start. ( An unconscious reminder that Cage is the son of filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola) Or could there be some hidden political message in there? Be still, my beating heart, and steer clear of ‘political’ films for a while.



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Hope Davis

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probation officer

Shiela

Nephew, I think.

Pete

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Apologies: Sheila.

Nephew?

Sheila

Sheila

Cage is Copolla's nephew.

Pete

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Coppola

Oh, thanks. I thought you might have mean that Cage's son in the film is his nephew. I should have checked the other. Just as useful, though, and not so unusual. It's quite instructive looking at film credits to see how often family names crop up. Did I see a Sphie Cage in the list at the end of TWM, or did I imagine it?

Sheila