This movie has the usual Guest-company virtues: the deep sense of ensemble, the absurdism embedded in genuine nuanced characterization, the flighty unpredictability. But the usual complaint - that things don't quite feel satisfying or resolved when the lights come up - is almost fatal here. I got the distinct feeling that as Guest strove to shoehorn in all his pals and highlight all the good bits, he lost the main thread. At first there's just a bit of discomfort with the overplayed and hyperextended what's-the-internet oldster naivete, and a vague sense of not-quite-clicking about the film within a film; but then suddenly "Home For Purim" has morphed into "Home For Thanksgiving" and it's like we dropped a reel even though I'm watching on DVD. Half the characters completely disappear (including Guest's overly familiar effete director), we never get so much as a line of dialogue from Home For Thanksgiving, and Catherine O'Hara's actress undergoes a reversal that is allowed no transition whatsoever - in one scene she's Martha Graham, in the next she's Joan Van Ark. This is highly dispiriting; it's like someone gave up. I hope they find a way to keep working together that gives things a boost, because this misses the mark.
Review of For Your Consideration
