By Joe Hammerschmidt
[NOTE: This film viewed and written on as part of the 2018 Seattle International Film Festival]
Life can be a bit of a puzzle sometimes, one where not all the pieces could fit together until we, as agents of society allow for the time to allow them to combine organically. Often enough, it may happen later than we expect, acting considerably like a second chance at living life, taking opportunities once thought impossible. For longtime producer Marc Turtletaub (perhaps best known for Little Miss Sunshine, and no relation to The MEG helmer Jon), his first time directing, may be considered a late step in his career. His film Puzzle (yet another very accurate title of this summer’s cinematic crop), proves late starts and second chances can lead to glory as much as they would regret and heartbreak. And all with an activity, not one person could possibly consider as competitive. Seriously, yes. Competitive puzzle-building exists, and the world may be just a little more exciting in its wake
Inspired rather directly, and almost indirectly at the same time from an Argentinian film with similar title origin, Turtletaub’s tale opens, with a crude irony, under the least exciting circumstances. Bored housewife Agnes (Kelly Macdonald) occupies her time rather minimally, outside of caring for workaholic husband Louie (David Denman), and their chipper teenage sons Gabe (Austin Abrams) and Ziggy (Bubba Weiler) in their rural New Jersey home. She’s turning 40, her life has rather peaked, modern technology doesn’t thrill her. She literally surveys the latest iPhone like it was a fleeting museum oddity. But put a jigsaw puzzle in front of her, however, her mind opens to a wider world suddenly in plain view. Wide enough to lure her to the New York City shop where her family bought the 1000-piece set, then to the upscale apartment of a legit champion in the art of puzzle solving. Robert (Irrfan Khan) is looking for a partner, Agnes may be the likely candidate. Together, they will seriously attempt a victory, mostly for his hopeful return in the international scene. Yet, for Agnes, it’s likely the start of many rewards and even more detriments.
One manages to outweigh the other, almost to an excess, in Polly Mann and Oren Moverman’s abstract adaptation of Natalia Smirnoff’s more original spin on the concept. The victim in this exchange is Denman, to whom I can’t shake off his pleasantly folksy spin as Roy on The Office. Of course, he’s proven multiple times how seamless his transitions between comedic and dramatic he makes. Yet an actor presents himself in one signature role that resonates over the years, and on occasion, it’s impossible to remember him for much else. Puzzle is one of those roles, where, try as he will, to elicit a well-structured emotional tidal wave, his contributions add to so little when the storyline can’t make up its own mind. Think of it as cause and effect, where only partial effects underscore their prevalent cause.
The character development which Turtletaub opts to key in on, that between Agnes and Robert, even when building too deep, rather too quickly for its intended runtime, plays out as exactly what audiences would be looking for, yet even that bond is somewhat lacking. Or, it is very present, and Turtletaub occupies a required restraint, uncertain over whether to interject the consequence of their working relationship. It does not work to their strengths, as both Khan and Macdonald are delivering leading role-quality performances, the likes of which even I hadn’t quite expected. Khan, of course, has his roots in Bollywood cinema, only breaking into the states rather late in his career, as some naysayers would quarrel, with parts in Jurassic World and Inferno. It may be easy to mistake the 51-year-old for someone with more street cred in far more American films, but Khan is considerably genuine, an iconic man with so much left to give to audiences globally, given the opportunity. To say I’m officially a fan after his performance here may be just right, what may be apter is the dream that more stateside moviegoers can finally allow him the pleasure of being involved with a nearly captivating story such as Puzzle.
Miss Macdonald, at the same time, has risen above where we all had first discovered her talent in Trainspotting. Having achieved spotless, often enthralling performances on screens of varying sizes, it was only a matter of time until a leading role came along that also presented a set of difficulties which ought to have been overcome. Of course, despite some small hiccups in the first act, really taking precious time to build up the silent suspense, there was nary a prospect where she wouldn’t have been able to really focus, drive the complexity of a scene homeward. It’s easily her single best character in any film to date, by a slight margin. Merida does lag a couple jigsaw pieces behind; her bravery to stick with a rather tough midwestern accent, one I couldn’t personally place all throughout the entire runtime helped widen the gap just a trifle.
If my only caveat was the struggle of staying on a single emotional pathway; and Turtletaub tends to stay with whichever’s most convenient on a scene-by-scene basis; there may still be much to love out of Puzzle. Of course, that’s while keeping in mind its face value as a simplistic study of personal character growth, and of human relationships when at their rawest, their most brutal, and unexpected. The way this supposed romantic drama (don’t consider it a comedy, or much of one) runs, it’s aiming to start slow and build its pacing, but increasing the odds one piece at a time. Given Mr. Denman is left with the shorter end of the stick, had he been more involved I’d have wound up loving each character a little more for their added dimensions when affirmed to reality. It’s not to say there’s an air of fantasy involved; the fact there’s a truth behind competitive puzzle building did leave me astonished with every passing minute. Turtletaub may have just chosen a little too carefully, where to go fictitious, and what/what not to leave in that could remind us more about ourselves, what we can relate to. Again, it’s a little restrained; but in most cases, that can still play well, to a certain degree. Leave it to a pair of leads like Khan and Macdonald, whom one can hope would have another chance of working together on screen before too long. They’re fully responsible for the choices they make against the slight uncertainty of a first-time director, leaving with smiles to viewer’s faces. And for maybe some, a whirlwind melancholy which, some may say, feels right for the cinematic soul. (B+)
Puzzle debuts on Seattle screens this weekend at SIFF Cinema Uptown; additional locations August 24; rated R for language; 103 minutes.
