| In the beginning, "Somewhere" is L.A. as Johnny Marco (Stephen Dorff) lives it up with fast cars, easy women, and lots and lots of alcohol. The simplistic shots of the film and minimal dialogue belie the depth to which we get to know him. It's quite amusing when his 11-year-old daughter, Cleo (Elle Fanning), shows up and knows less about his lifestyle than we do. | | 2010
Directed by: Sofia Coppola
Screenplay by: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Stephen Dorff and Elle Fanning |
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Stephen Dorff (left), Elle Fanning (center) and Chris Pontius (right) star in
SOMEWHERE, an Alliance Films' release. Photo Credit: Merrick Morton. |
We very subtly explore the maturation of Johnny as Cleo becomes a fixture in his life. As Johnny grows up and learns about himself, there is a significant amount of substance to the subtlety and simplicity of the film. I relished the lack of story, the slow scenes, and the seemingly meandering directions it took because it allowed me to discover everything that was going on without them having to tell me.
There is more to this film than the lack of nominations suggest and more to the characters than the easy, superficial way to describe them. It is a character study and a father-daughter relationship exploration that offers a little bit of humour and a lot of food for thought that is way more satisfying than the theatre popcorn. In the end, "Somewhere" was more of an indescribable place, but it was beautiful. |
