BLU-Ray REE-Vu: Solitary Man



I'm not a player, sorry, I mean: "playa' ". Yeah, I'm a thirty-something that typically dates twenty-somethings. True to my non-playa' mode, however, I've always figured that I'd find someone with which to build something significant and have never looked for the quick hook-up. I suppose that maybe part of me had always wanted to be more of a playa', that is, until I watched Solitary Man.  It's a movie that delivers a solid message to current and would-be players alike: If you are at all capable of moving beyond greed and simultaneously driving your motivations north of your crotch, do it; otherwise, life just becomes sadly pathetic.

Michael Douglas plays Ben Kalmen, a New York City car dealership icon that is well rep'd as a "playa'". He'll talk his way into putting your butt in the seat of a new car and then talk you into the backseat. That's right. He's a player, in every sense of the word. However, at the ripe age of 60, it's catching up with him. His playin' led to some legal woes--dealerships gone. His playin' led to marital woes--relationship gone. His on-going playin' with the ladies has even screwed up his prospects of starting over. The movie unfolds as Kalmen battles family issues, friendship issues, professional issues. Yadayadayada, we eventually see the results of his life of playing people in sex and love, in business and life. Message received: It's not pretty.

Douglas was outstanding. His Ben Kalmen is a charmer, no doubt. Kalmen's issues are less about sex and more about nurturing his own ego-driven narcissistic world. Early in the flick, we see him engage in conversation with an 18-year old Pretty-Young-Thing. Their conversation leads to a proverbial one-night horizontal dance. This seems to be just a situationally charged hormonal explosion...until later. That reality emerges when the same lines are squashed by a sharper, more experienced PYT not willing to be played. Douglas played the role beautifully.You find yourself wanting to kick Kelman's ass, but feeling bad for him when he gets his ass kicked.

The rest of the group is solid, too; and it's a good one. Susan Sarandon, Danny DeVito, Jenna Fischer and Mary-Louise Parker spotlight a great cast with good performances all around. I'll give it 3.5 stars. Good story and solid performances abound. It's a sleeper, but one to rent when you're in the mood for a sharply delivered lesson. Whether you need it or not, well, that's your call!

True...out!