"Win Win" is a Draw.

Rating: 6/10 (8 April 2011)

The average American is overweight. The average American is in credit card debt. The average American is struggling to pay their monthly mortgage. Paul Giamatti understands who the average American is and he understands how to portray the average American on film. He is probably one of the few famous actors who doesn't have to spend a lot of time at the gym preparing for a role. With his "everyman" look, he can deliver an average character in which most middle-aged audience members can relate.
"Win Win" is the latest independent story from director Thomas McCarthy featuring Giamatti as Mike Flaherty, a local attorney in a small town in New Jersey (although, this small town could have been anywhere in the United States). McCarthy did a splendid job of setting the stage of this quaint town. After the first five minutes, I wanted to pull up a chair at the local Dunkin Donuts and have a coffee with the townspeople.
Mike is struggling to make ends meet, yet he has an overwhelming disgust of having to take a regular job to provide for his family. His marriage to Jackie (played by Amy Ryan) is fine but his law practice is struggling. He has a particular client, Leo Poplar (played by Burt Young), who is slipping into dementia and is in need of constant attention. Mike sees an opportunity here. Leo is going to be forced out of his home and into a nursing home. Leo also has quite a bit of money; in fact he pays out a large monthly commission to his caretaker. Mike sees an opportunity to take that monthly commission and put Leo in a nursing home. Mike is a good person with good intentions, but like the rest of the working class folks, he has the common desire to provide for his family.
After Mike puts Leo in his nursing home, we are introduced to Kyle (played by Alex Shaffer, in his only film role to date). Kyle is a runaway from his mother in Ohio. He shows up unannounced and starts taking the focus of the film. Kyle is a strong willed yet extremely quiet and pleasant young man. He also brings with him a mystery of why he left Ohio in the first place.
As part of Mike's contribution to the community he coaches high school wrestling. The wrestling team is lacking in the "wins" category. It turns out that Kyle is an exceptional wrestler. Just what Mike needs. Mike's family takes Kyle in and also starts understanding his story and why he is running away from his mom, who is in a drug rehab facility.
The story moves in the general direction that you would expect from a story like this. Kid runs away from home; mom follows to repair a broken relationship; kid finds out the man that he trusted is a liar; mom wants her dad's monthly commission; conflict arises and a solution is found. I hate to give a broad-brush stroke like that but it's a simple movie that doesn't offer too much excitement. Taking into consideration that it is a movie involving a high intensity contact sport such as wrestling I would expect a little more action and intensity from the pace of the film.
Should you see this movie? Maybe. It does deliver a story with solid acting and character development. I do see Shaffer moving up in his career using this film as a launching pad. During the movie, I kept thinking that he reminds me of a young Sean Penn, not a "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" Penn, but a "Taps" or "Bad Boys" Penn. Shaffer has a recognizable intensity and more importantly a believability to him. This isn't a story about wrestling or a story about deception or even a story about forgiveness. It's a story giving the audience a two-hour window viewing Americana in modern times.