THE LEISURE SEEKER: For Those Seeking A Leisurely Viewing Experience

[Published at Film Inquiry] Directed by Paolo Virzì (La prima cosa bella, Tutta la vita davanti), written by Virzì, Stephen Amidon (Il capitale umano), Francesca Archibugi (Mignon è partita), Virzì‘s La prima cosa bella co-screenwriter Francesco Piccolo, adapted from author Michael Zadoorian‘s eponymous novel, and starring two icons of cinema, Academy Award winner Dame Helen Mirren (The Queen) and two-time Golden Globe Winner Donald Sutherland (Citizen X, Path to War), The Leisure Seeker contains no shortage of talent. However, with so many talented voices involved, it meanders slightly and gets lost somewhere along the way. It isn’t an unpleasant viewing experience; it doesn’t demand anything from the audience. However, it could have been a markedly better film could the script have been adapted more closely with the source material.

Among the many changes the four superfluous screenwriters make to the novel are changing the couple’s road trip route from Detroit, Michigan to Disneyland in Anaheim, California via Route 66, to Boston, Massachusetts to Earnest Hemingway’s home in Key West, Florida, in the Florida Keys, via the scenic roads. In The Leisure Seeker, Ella (Mirren) and John Spencer (Sutherland), escape their suburban retirement and overbearing needy children and controlling doctors to go on one last trip in their old age and diminishing health in their RV, endearingly named The Leisure Seeker. Ella has cancer and John has Alzheimer’s disease, adding to the finality and tragedy of Zadoorian‘s story.

Stay For The Performances

In a film such as The Leisure Seeker, the only consistent thing is the acting. Mirren and Sutherland are never short of phenomenal, even when given schmaltzy or awkward dialogue. What shouldn’t go unnoticed are the performances after the dialogue has ended, in-between words, when Mirren and Sutherland exchange facial expressions that speak volumes, more than the dialogue implies. Particularly Sutherland, whose portrayal of a man losing his memory is neither showy nor strained, is heartbreaking to watch as he attempts to navigate each situation and excavate each memory. Mirren‘s South Carolina accent is a bit distracting, but the way in which her Ella responds to John’s cognitive deterioration is utterly lamentable.

THE LEISURE SEEKER: For Those Seeking A Leisurely Viewing Experience — source: Sony Pictures Classics

During their pit stops, Ella and John look at pictures through their projector. Oftentimes they’ll get audiences on the campsite watching their family slideshows. It’s, by and large, the best part of The Leisure Seeker. We get the privilege of viewing precious, unearthed, never-before-seen moments in these two icons’ pasts. And there’s a lot of history to display for the lucky campers onsite; between the two actors, they’ve been acting on the silver screen for over a century. That’s really what life is. A series of pictures over a period of time. And over that period of time, those pictures may change. And they may even disappear. It isn’t all the Mirren and Sutherland show, however. Janel Moloney does a fine supporting job as the daughter Jane, battling having to take care of her parents while coping with their illness and diminishing health.

Novel Adjustments

Virzì, Amidon, Archibugi, and Piccolo make several adjustments to Zadoorian‘s novel that doesn’t exactly translate well. The four screenwriters set The Leisure Seeker in the American South during the 2016 presidential election, one of the most divided times in American history, ideologically. In the novel, the couple is both midwestern, yet in the film, Ella is southern, for whatever reason. At one point during an episode, John wanders off into a Trump rally for whatever reason, and begins chanting “No more Muslims!” and “Make America great again!” Ella reminds him that he’s always voted democrat. Alzheimer’s doesn’t exactly make one switch political parties. The half-hearted attempts at political commentary fall short. There’s no need to analyze a dual character study about an elderly couple through such a general, topical lens. It’s completely unnecessary, thus making the scenes feel out of place within the context of the The Leisure Seeker‘s narrative.

Perhaps the film could have used the novel’s first-person narration. Ella’s character in the novel was in control of the narrative, in a sense. Aside from the Trump rally, along the way, Ella and John get pulled over, nearly robbed at knifepoint by two young hooligans, share a beer with a group of men who objectify their daughter during a slideshow, and almost encounter an animal in the woods. When they finally arrive at the Hemingway house, it feels uneventful. However, we, as the viewer, are invested in Ella and John’s journey, nonetheless. We’ve made it this far. We’ve reveled in the two leads’ performances. We want to see it through, obviously.

The Leisure Seeker

It wouldn’t be fair to the reader who hasn’t yet seen The Leisure Seeker to reveal the ending. However, it is thoroughly predictable. Think of John and Ella’s RV, aptly named, as aforementioned, The Leisure Seeker, as an allegory for their lives. The old machine has been running for a long time, and this long road trip might be all the mileage it has left before its engine breaks down. Take with that what you will. There likely wasn’t anybody going into The Leisure Seeker thinking that it wouldn’t be somewhat sad, if not more so.

There is absolutely no explanation for The Leisure Seeker‘s leisurely 112-minute runtime. The same film could have been made in 90 minutes, easily. However, there are certain scenes on the road, the campsite, or in the RV that drag on. The four screenwriters bring up relationship-altering affairs on both sides of the marriage, yet never come to a resolution. Perhaps most out-of-place is John’s ramblings about Hemingway. In the book, he comes off as charming, intelligent, articulate. In the film, there doesn’t seem to be a rhyme to John’s reason in regards to his Hemingway ramblings. Maybe that’s because nobody is listening. In any case, it becomes slightly redundant.

Conclusion: These People Can Act

If, for nothing else, watch The Leisure Seeker and stay for Mirren and Sutherland‘s performances. Mirren was nominated for a Golden Globe, for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, for her performance as Ella. Watching these two actors go toe to toe, banter back and forth, and fall in love over and over again is a genuine delight. Witnessing their health deteriorating is absolutely heartbreaking, in large part because their performances are so masterful.

The Leisure Seeker isn’t a bad film, but its sluggish pace, inexplicable changes between the film and the book, and some corny dialogue keep it from being great and distract the attention from the impressive central performances. Virzì and company try and fail at being perceptively political; there’s no seeming point to the political undertone. However, this is only Virzì‘s first American film. It will be interesting to see what he chooses next.

What did you think of Virzì’s American film debut? What did you think the strongest aspect of the script was? Which performance in the film was your favorite?

The Leisure Seeker saw a limited theatrical release in the U.S. on March 9, 2018. It is currently available to rent on VOD platforms and for free for Starz subscribers. For more information on its release, click here.