Review:
"Norman:
The Moderate Rise
and Tragic Fall
of a New York Fixer'
Release Date: May 12, 2017
Rating: R Running Time: 117 minutes We all know of or have encountered a Norman Oppenheimer, that fast-talker who claims he can connect you with the right people but doesn’t quite seem to be on the up and up despite the charm and sincerity he exudes. In Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer, Richard Gere plays such an in-your-face middle man, and he plays him with such tirelessness and unbridled optimism that it is easy to trust in his Norman Oppenheimer even when he’s given you little reason to believe he can deliver on his promises. Maybe what betrays Norman is the hint of desperation that can be found in Gere’s eyes. Or the rush in Gere’s voice that reveals Norman’s anxiousness. Regardless, Norman is a shark navigating the channels of New York in search of people he can meet and later introduce to others for business purposes to be determined. Dressed his trademark flat cap, scarf and tan wool coat, Norman spends his days talking on his earphone to people who are reluctantly take his calls and certainly have little interest in doing business with him. He doesn’t have an office. That’s a lie. New York City is his office. But it isn’t clear where he lives. Or even how much money he has. He seems to live off pickled fish on crackers and hand-crafted coffee. Which may explain why he can afford to buy an expensive pair of designer shoes as an impulse gift to Israeli politician Micha Eshel (Lior Ashkenazi), whom Norman has targeted as a potential contact. His investment in Eshel pays off when, years later, the candidate for peace in the Middle East ascends to the position of the Prime Minister of Israel. Suddenly, Norman receives phone calls from the rich, important and influential people who previously did not know he existed. Life is looking up for Norman. Until his role as a “macher”—Yiddish for fixer—proves too overwhelming and risky. Writer/director Joseph Cedar possesses genuine affection for Norman, which is certainly contagious to those choose to follow Norman’s rise and fall. But the pathos to be found in Norman’s daily struggles is beyond palatable. The odds are shacked against Norman even when something seems to be working in his favor. Barring the final few minutes, when the fruits of Norman’s labors to fix the mess he created are finally revealed, every scene in Norman is squirm-inducing. It’s just as hard to watch Norman get rejected by every corporate hotshot who views him as a nobody as it is to watch Norman attempt to please those movers and shakers who immediately regard him as somebody because of his relationship with the Israeli Prime Minister. Cedar has crafted a remarkable comedy of discomfort that wants Norman to succeed but possesses the self-awareness that he’s just never going to win at life. This is never more evident than when Norman encounters his mirror image in Hank Azaria’s down-on-his-luck macher, Srul Katz. Norman is one exaggeration away from going back to being a nobody. “You’re like a drowning man waving at an ocean liner,” says Norman’s part-sympathetic, part-embarrassed cousin Philip Cohen (Michael Sheen). “I’m a good swimmer,” Norman responds in a later conversation with Philip. For Cedar, it’s not about how good a swimmer Norman is, but whether he can keep his head above water long enough to resolve the problems of his making. However much of an enigma Norman remains through his trial and tribulations, his survival skills can never be called into question. Robert Sims Aired: May 11, 2017 Web site: http://sonyclassics.com/norman/ |
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