Here Today (2021)
SHOULD I SEE IT?
YES
This is a film that might be a crowd-pleaser. There is an earnestness on display here that makes a negative review of this movie feel “wrong” on some level.
I actually think Billy Crystal and Tiffany Haddish are kind of great together, something I never gave a thought to until watching Here Today.
Billy Crystal has crafted something deeply personal and many of his fans will largely appreciate the film because of it.
NO
A movie trying so hard to please, it actually reaches the point of obnoxiousness.
Stilted dialogue, a television season’s worth of story ideas and subplots, and Crystal’s self-deprecating charm come together to make this movie equally watchable and cringeworthy all at the same time.
On the heels of movies like The Father, Supernova, Dick Johnson is Dead, and The Relic, so much of Here Today feels like it does not fully understand dementia, with nearly the depth and importance and care and concern those movies did. Quite frankly, some may take offense with the way the condition is treated on screen.
OUR REVIEW
In his new film, Here Today, Billy Crystal not only stars in the leading role, he also directs, co-produces, and co-writes the screenplay. The subject matter is somber, but the legendary actor and comedian aims to deliver a movie that humanizes and humbles; to make us laugh while generating a tear or two along the way.
Crystal’s presence is kind, endearing and charming even. But this effort is so scattered, often times misguided, and so tonally and emotionally imbalanced that he has created a film somehow both cringe-inducing and infinitely watchable. Not necessarily in a “trainwreck” sort of way, but also kind of in a “trainwreck” sort of way.
Meaning…you just can’t look away once you commit to this rollercoaster ride of melodramatic whimsy. And that is no small feat; the film reaches to tickle the funny bone while simultaneously maneuvering into position to yank hard on your heartstrings. And on top of that, Crystal embeds himself in the leading role, as an empathetic, sympathetic centerpiece to the entire project.
Starring as Charlie Burnz (or “Berns” depending on which press notes you read), Crystal plays an aging, comedic writer who writes and consults on a popular sketch comedy show (similar to “Saturday Night Live,” which Crystal appeared one for one season as a cast member and writer in 1984-85.) Charlie still lands enough jokes for the showrunner (Max Gordon Moore) to keep him on staff as a mentor to younger writers.
The real reason we are here though is that Charlie has been diagnosed with early onset dementia, a fact that he keeps hidden from his estranged daughter (Laura Benanti) and son (Penn Badgley).
Enter Tiffany Haddish. Portraying Emma, a singer in a band ready to possibly get its big break, she finds herself crossing paths with Charlie after cashing in on a lunch date won in an auction by her ex-boyfriend. After the lunch date devolves into chaos, they eventually become friends and Charlie shares Emma everything he is dealing with the more he gets to know Emma.
Crystal’s screenplay, co-written with Alan Zweibel, whose short story “The Prize” serves as the film’s source material, is packed to the gills with flashbacks and never-ending storylines. Often, Crystal punctuates his dialogue with a quick jab of a one-liner or witty observation. Then, almost on cue, he gets serious and offers a pearl or two of life-lived wisdom. This happens over and over. How no one tires of his incessant one-two punch of sweet and savory is mind-boggling to watch play out on screen.
We could write a whole separate review on how Crystal and Zweibel “write dementia,” but let’s just say they seem to not really know how to properly depict it in an accurate and truthful manner. Dementia, as seen here, is reduced to occasional, surprising bouts of forgetfulness and a life disruption here and there. While elements of this are certainly true with individuals grappling with the disease, so much is ignored here that the condition feels like nothing more than a prop used to further less meaningful stories which are, quite frankly, easier to write and perform on screen.
Crystal’s smile can warm anyone’s heart. His kind-hearted tone and belief in this material almost sells it with the conviction of an impassioned Sunday sermon. Haddish forms a unique, quirky bond with Crystal and they clearly are having fun together on screen.
But for all the movie ignores with its central conceit, Here Today takes no discernible shape or form. We have a miniseries’ amount of plot and exposition. Charlie’s diagnosis makes him long for his deceased wife Carrie (Louisa Krause), and we endure numerous P.O.V. flashbacks showcasing the course of their courtship and marriage. As a means of recalling memories, Carrie talks directly into the camera. This is an interesting approach, until Crystal relies on the technique so much that it hampers the flow and pace of his film.
So many moments feel awkward and strange. Eventually, we learn why there are fissures in the relationship between Charlie and his children, but that doesn’t quite explain how he remains so close with the granddaughter (Audrey Hsieh) he adores, when his own daughter won’t even speak to him.
It is Emma who finds value in Charlie and that’s sweet I guess, but she makes odd decisions that defy logic. Here Today is full of these types of inconsistencies and poorly stitched together moments. Then, yet again, you have to acknowledge that the film is performed so earnestly and genuinely, you have to kind of admire the fact that Crystal is working so hard to try and please whatever audience may be watching his film.
Ultimately though the movie does not work. We gain no real insight on the struggles of dementia. We see the denouement coming long before it arrives. Emotional moments feel forced and empty of depth.
Here Today seems to exist as a vessel for Crystal, on some level, to work through fears and anxieties he may be wrestling within himself. I hope that is not the case, but the film’s efforts to be all things to all people leaves little reason to think otherwise.
CAST & CREW
Starring: Billy Crystal, Tiffany Haddish, Louisa Krause, Laura Benanti, Penn Badgley, Anna Deavere Smith, Audrey Hsieh, Andrew Durand, Alex Brightman, Max Gordon Moore, Nyambi Nyambi, Brandon Uranowitz, Matthew Broussard, Barry Levinson, Sharon Stone, Kevin Kline.
Director: Billy Crystal
Written by: Billy Crystal, Alan Zweibel
Adapted from the short story, “The Prize” written by Alan Zweibel
Release Date: May 7, 2021
Stage 6 Films