Jay Kelly is the definition of a charismatic movie star and George Clooney fits that bill to a T. From his gleaming smile, the sparkle in his eyes and an easy, authoritative “man’s man”demeanor, he is always the center of attention. George Clooney jokes that even though Writer/Director Noah Baumbach wrote this script for him, he dared not turn it down and let Brad Pitt get the part. And it seems he had a blast doing it.
Baumbach also wrote the part of Jay’s loyal personal manager for Adam Sandler who tends to all of Jay Kelly’s needs and wants. Ron has sacrificed his own life, wife and kids for everything Kelly. There are plenty of hilarious scenes showing their partnership, but Baumbach wanted Sandler to show off his serious acting skills, as he did in Uncut Gems.
Ron (Sandler) and press agent Liz (Laura Dern) follow him around like dutiful puppies, carefully handling him to keep Jay’s impulsive wants and temptations from damaging his public image. Jay’s family life is a mess. Baumbach uses the movie star’s journey to illuminate that he doesn’t play a starring role in real life which is passing him by. He is divorced with two daughters who hate him, and his celebrity. And his self-indulgent demands constantly threaten to sabotage Ron’s family life when Jay finds out his youngest daughter is graduating high school about to take off for Europe instead of spending time with Dad. He must follow her. to make up for lost time. She wants no part of him.
Jay’s origin story as an actor is also revealed in a scene with his old friend and roommate Tim (Billy Crudup) at the funeral of Peter Schneider (Jim Broadbent), the director who gave him his first big role. In the course of “catching up” Tim reveals his true feelings for Jay. Turns out Jay stole that role and the girlfriend, from the more talented Tim whose rage now turns into fisticuffs with a black eye for Jay and more serious injury to Tim. Crudup’s scene is a true standout. But it becomes a PR nightmare for Ron and Liz who have to cover up the bad publicity by accompanying Jay to Europe so he can follow his daughter for quality time in Italy and get some positive kudos accepting an award there.
Baumbach and co-writer Emily Mortimer (Jay’s hairdresser in the film) craft the most fun sequence showing Jay and his entourage looking going car to car on the Italian train to find his daughter who is perfectly happy with her boyfriend, neither expecting nor wanting Daddy to show up. The fun part is watching Jay plays off passengers excited to see the big movie star. Here, he becomes engaging and human meeting fans face-to-face. But it really pays off for Liz and Ron seeing spring into action as a real life hero. Clooney looks amazing jumping off the train to chase down a thief who stole an elderly woman’s purse! Jay pours it on like he’s in an epic action scene and everybody loves it!
As Jay is dealing with his growing older, flashbacks, including affectionate scenes with his older daughter Jennifer (Riley Keough) pop up to make him think back to his own life. He’s also introduced to Ron’s other major client Frank Hewitt (Patrick Wilson), who happens to be in Italy. Jay sees this actor with his loving family, including wife (Isla Fisher) in contrast to lone traveler Jay.
At the Italian gala awards presentation, we’re shown Jay’s quest for public love clearly has effectively ruined every other aspect of his life. The quote from Sylvia Plath sets the theme for this story, “It’s a hell of a responsibility to be yourself. It’s easier to be somebody else or nobody at all.” Having spent most of his life in front of the camera, Jay is about to receive an award for a lifetime of work that he now realizes hasn’t accomplished as much as he thought. Even his attempt to reconnect with his father (Stacy Keach) falls on deaf ears.
The perfunctory “sizzle reel” shown as a retrospective, in which Bombach uses cuts from Clooney’s real films, wakes Jay up to reality. Before he receives his award, there’s a moment for Jay and Ron to re-bond to convince themselves they’ve made something of value. Clooney gets to kind of make fun of himself and his craft, while Baumbach gets Sandler out of shorts and Hawaiian shirts, showing his talent in another serious role. Clooney plays the star in Jay Kelly, but in this film, Sandler is a scene stealer.
Netflix 2 Hours 12 Minutes R
In select theaters now and streaming December 5th.
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