‘I’m sick of lying every time it’s not perfect…’
Mumblecore is a subgenre of independent film that values authenticity and raw emotion over plot and action. The genre is typically defined by low key, improvised dialogue, plots grounded in reality and a revolving cast of actors and directors usually featuring Jack Johnson, Greta Gerwig, Joe Swanson, the Duplass brothers and Lynn Shelton (among others). Key films in the genre include Frances Ha, Happy Christmas and Hump Day, or if TV is more your thing, then check out Room 104 and Easy. Nights and Weekends, directed by and starring Swanberg and Gerwig, is typical of the genre as a whole…
Mattie (Gerwig) and James (Swanberg) attempt to hold down a relationship despite the fact that they live thousands of miles apart. That’s it. As I said, light on plot.
To get this out of the way now, if two people talking in a room does not make for a movie you want to see, you may as well stop reading this now because that is pretty much all this film is. Very little actually happens on the page, but it terms of subtext and cinema as a character study, we see Mattie and James’ relationship change as the movie goes on – the physical distance between them a constant reminder of the growing emotional distance. Crucially, Swanberg and particularly Gerwig are experts at taking a simple concept and turning it into something emotive and memorable. The more affectionate scenes are warm and cosy, but some of the more awkward scenes are genuinely excruciating, mainly because of Gerwig’s ability to display every single one of her emotions all over her face at all times. In some ways, the fact that Gerwig has become such a successful director (Little Women with the Barbie film on the way) is a loss to the world of acting because she really is incredible. Swanberg is breezily natural and a likeable presence, but it is Gerwig who carries this movie onscreen. She is an actor who demands the attention of the camera and lights up any scene in which she appears.
As with any film in this weird little subgenre, you’ll either be into it, or you won’t. Me? I love this shit. Another mumblecore success.