Mehhh....

Rating: 6/10 (27 March 2015)

I had only just finished the book "Foxcather" before seeing the film, and really, the movie simply flows along as neatly and precisely as the book does, that is to say, slowly. The central story really doesn't kick in until nearly half way through the book where we deal with Mark Schultz' early life and career and his jealousy of his brother's success. This has all turned around by the time you get to John Du Pont, just not in the rewarding sense that Mark justifiably deserves. He is drawn to Du Pont out of a sense of respect for himself and the need to move on. Steve Carell does a great job of mimicking Du Pont, but there is not a lot of meat there to tuck into. Du Pont's back story is rather well written in the book, but I feel that the movie simply centered on his "NEED" to feel loved by his rather clichéd mother figure. There is a lot more to it than that, such as his own attempts at becoming a star in various sports, by contracting the best coaches in whatever sport he tried. In the end, the film really doesn't get to the nitty gritty of why he did what he did, it only hints at matriarchal concerns and a need to be liked, which isn't the whole story. There is a lot of subtlety in this film however, and the director should be praised for sticking rigidly to his source material, and not presenting the two brother wrestlers as All-American Heroes. Mark isn't a particularly likable character, but after reading the book, it's a fairly accurate portrayal by Channing Tatum. Mark Ruffalos character is less to the fore, but portrays his brotherly love and slight superiority well. The problem is, this doesn't necessarily make it the most interesting of movies, and doesn't spell it out for the blockbuster jaded film-goer. 2001 was a great "slow-movie", Foxcather just drags along, almost metaphorically mirroring the life of the Mark Schuitz.