Big Screen Peter: Charlie St. Cloud

Editor’s note: Peter Lewis has agreed to use whatever it is you call his writing style to provide some measure of analysis to those folks who still go to a theater to see a movie. Enjoy.

review by Peter Lewis

There are those who view life as one great and limitless mystery. Unexplained phenomena and other-worldly interactions are never to be discounted. Within this mindset, everything is possible.

In literature, the great Gabriel Garcia Marquez is often indicated as the creator of “magical realism,” that is the use of fantastical elements in otherwise normal settings. While Garcia Marquez has undeniably influenced a myriad of writers, the reach of his “creation” is far from limited to the printed word.

In film, Michel Gondry has made use of the whimsically fantastic to create affecting portrayals of flawed characters in films like “The Science of Sleep” and the more famous “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” Bridging these two worlds is “Big Fish,” a Southern Gothic novel by Daniel Wallace that was created into a feature film by another fantasist, Tim Burton.

All of this is not mentioned solely for edification, but rather as a counterpoint to “Charlie St. Cloud,” a new film directed by Burr Steers. Ostensibly of this mystical mold, “Charlie St. Cloud” is rather tame in comparison to some of these aforementioned practitioners of the fantastical art.

The movie is loosely based on a novel (The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud) by Ben Sherwood and tells the story of a promising young man’s life derailed by tragedy. Bound by a promise to his brother, Charlie St. Cloud (Zac Efron) never leaves his hometown on the coast of Washington state and never realizes his obvious potential. Instead, he spends his days as a caretaker of the cemetery that is home to his brother’s grave. With the reputation of being a bit loony, Charlie becomes a loner, wrapped up in his own mind. His social life revolves around his interactions with his dead brother.

Despite the mystical nature of the film, at its core the film is a love story between an ambitious woman (Amanda Crew as Tess Carroll) and a cowed, but talented young man (Efron). Despite the obvious patronage toward the female demographic, Charlie St. Cloud is an evenly paced film. Naturally, there were plenty of shots to allow the young ladies of America to marvel at the sculpted physique of Efron, but the filmmakers took their time to build up the story of Charlie and his brother. Wisely opting to use quick but effective shots to convey the unspoken connection between the characters of Tess and Charlie.

Since penetrating the national consciousness with his leading role in “High School Musical,” Efron is largely dismissed as yet another teen heartthrob lacking the chops to translate his pinup status into serious films. While his turn as Charlie St. Cloud was far from revelatory, he seems to capable of angling toward that transition — especially if one considers his 2008 work on the Richard Linklater film, “Me and Orson Welles.”

Like some of its more traditional teen-centric romantic-comedy brethren, “Charlie St. Cloud” goes for the melodramatic jugular. But while these other films are sappy weep-fests with little originality, propping themselves up on tired tricks of the romance trade, “Charlie St. Cloud” possesses an inspirational turn. As much as it is about love, it is ever so much more.

It’s about fear and life and what can happen to a person when they worry too much about what happened instead of what can happen. Other works reinforce the idea that one isn’t complete until they’ve found love, that mythical seven-pillared worthy house. Yet, when the final credits roll in “Charlie St. Cloud,” the ending isn’t about finding love, it’s about finding oneself and how that transformation can open one up, not only to the wonders of love, but to all the wonders of life.

• Charlie St. Cloud is playing at the Carmike 14 and the Malco Cinema 12 in Fort Smith, and the Malco Van Buren Cinema. Link here for time and ticket info.

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