Happiness (1998)

Happiness

• The only reason I ever heard of this film was because Andrew Garfield recommended it on his episode of the Criterion Closet. Despite having never heard of it, I went ahead and said screw it, based on his recommendation, ordered it, and finally watched it. I have been fantastically disturbed, and I have absolutely no idea how to feel about it. My mind is very conflicted. I didn’t know if I was supposed to take it seriously or laugh. So I did a little bit of both. There’s so many awkward, uncomfortable moments that are so easy to make fun of, but on the flip side, they’re enough to creep you out. It’s one of the funniest yet most serious films I’ve seen. A perfect blend of emotional conflict and straight laughs. You gotta have a dark sense of humor to enjoy this. I loved how there wasn’t a central storyline. It basically just examines characters who are all intertwined in some way, and it studies how they act and react. Good storytelling without an overarching story. The writing around the characters was excellent, especially when it came to traits and dialogue. Again, bringing back the “uncomfortable moments” comment. So many lines that were hilarious but in the most disturbing way. The performances were all amazing, no matter how perverted the character was. Philip Seymour Hoffman was great at being a weirdo, Jane Adams was good at being helpless and vulnerable, and Dylan Baker absolutely stole the show. He gave one of the best performances of the decade. His steady tone while being an absolute horrible person was terrific. And the fact that there wasn’t a main character was nice. Everyone was important. Overall, this film was impeccably written, and kind of shook me to my core. It’s definitely on my list of non-horror horror movies, and I would recommend it to all dark comedy fans. This film is officially Berry Approved, so go watch it now (and thanks Andrew Garfield)!