The Man from Elysian Fields

"The Man From Elysian Fields" tells of a struggling writer (Garcia) who pens his soul into the pages of a novel in a last ditch bid for success. A solid three star romanticized drama with a beautiful cast, "...Elysian Fields" delivers its "deal with the devil" story with seductive style and an engrossing ebb and flow which will entrance those who can overlook the subtle contrivances required to make the puzzle pieces fit. Good stuff for all but the most cynical drama junkies. (B+)

"The Man from Elysian Fields" is a writer's film filled with sensuality, failure, loss, hope, infidelity, intrigue and deception with a touch of film noir. Byron Tiller (Andy Garcia) plays the starving artist with an early success that brought neither fortune nor lasting notoriety who is ready to compromise his ideals for grocery money. Luther Fox (Mick Jagger) has set up a deceptively unobtrusive escort service across the hall. Luther draws Byron into a discussion about life and winds up with a recruit for his high-class service. But writers need broad experience and this opportunity is too tempting for Tilly to pass up. He's entirely too reluctant which makes him ripe for the picking.

And he's just the candidate for the wife of a prominent author. This multiple Pulitzer Prize winning novelist, Tobias Alcott played by James Coburn, is losing his muse and his health, but his powers of deception are as sharp as ever. His wife, played by the icy Olivia Williams, draws Tilly into the family with several offers he can't refuse. Andy Garcia nails the struggling writer's persona begging our sympathy while he spirals down the hierarchy of alternatives to keep the wolf from the door. Mick Jagger is perfect for the part of the Faustian lizard who's tiring of the game he's mastered. The role of the escort, his office facade and ultimately his own personal relationship crumbles under the weight of deception.

Tilly is seduced by the temptations of a shrewd couple (the Alcott's) whose too-good-to-be-true offer leaves him with a great story and perhaps a Pulitzer of his own. But he's got to write it. There's always a catch.

The Hollywood ending, so clearly the decision of a focus group isn't a worthy conclusion to this story. This is another film with talented actors, superior cinematography and an intriguing story but lacking direction. Recent films like "Posession" come to mind. The product is compromised when the director lacks the courage to bring the film to a meaningful - in this case a disturbing - conclusion rather than one that's "satisfying," Tilly's editor spoke to this issue when he rejected his second novel saying that the reader doesn't want to think microcosm when she's sitting on the bus... In trying to please the mainstream, reach a wider audience and improve the box office, we lose opportunities to excel.

So what else is new in Hollywood?

The road to hell is always paved with good intentions. It is the axiom pitfall that catches so many; including Andy Garcia's character, Byron Tiller, in `The Man from Elesian Fields'. Having thrown years into a failed novel, Byron grows increasingly desperate to make ends meet for his family and find success. Compromising himself for what he needs, he finds an easy answer in the employ of Elesian Fields, a male escort service operated by Luther Fox (Mik Jagger). It is a classically executed set-up, but because the script has so much to say before the final fade out, it staggers like a buss boy who has picked up too many dishes from too many tables.

After the proper cajoling and encouraging, Luther sets Byron up on his first assignment with the beautiful wife of a renowned multi-Pulitzer writer. Byron doesn't go easily into this abyss. He won't escort Andrea (Olivia Williams) beyond her limo door after an opera the first night and is greatly relieved to return home to his wife Dena (Juliana Margulies). The second date, however, progresses until the date and escort have their lovemaking interrupted by a visit from Andrea's elderly and approving husband, Tobias (James Coburn). Tobias extends an invitation for Byron to work with him on revising his last book. Byron soon finds himself leading the dizzying life of working for Luther, Andrea and Tobias while never letting Dena know about his escort duties with Andrea.

The first hour of the film is tightly written and gracefully proceeds with the steady and beautiful cinematography of Kramer Morgenthau. After the writers start exchanging ideas, the pace of the film picks up considerably. Conversation becomes swept aside in montages and assumptions. Even the music, subtle and appropriate in the first half draws unnecessary attention in the second half. The situation is familiar. Betrayed couples are as old as time. Struggling writers are found throughout cinema. The thing that separates them is the individual characters and interaction. Those and the heartfelt dialog get lost in bringing the story to where it is expected to end to make the author's statement.

Far from poor, but never really convincing, `Elesian Fields' is best noted for the acting it harbors. James Coburn plays a dying artist with dignity and is smart enough to let his poise crumble from time to time. Mik Jagger is wonderfully understated as the dispenser of temptation and his moments of disappointment with Anjelica Huston round out an award-worthy performance. Andy Garcia believably balances an quiet man whose temper gets the best of him now and again. Only Juliana Margulies is underused. It's unfortunate that so much talent could not overcome the other more intrinsic weaknesses.

The Man From Elysian Fields is a film with not one bad performance, a number of really good ones, and a story that keeps it and eye-gluer, in a sense. Andy Garcia is the writer, Byron, struggling to sell a second novel after a first that is selling almost nothing after seven years. Enter Fox (Mick Jagger) who runs an escort service for women, and offers Byron to be the "fulfiller" of married women. Byron wants to quit, until one night he meets the wife of Tobias Alcott (James Colburn), a famous, aging writer. Every character is convincing, even Jagger, who has strayed away from acting roles in general since the flop Freejack, and here takes a tailor made role and gives off a fascinating presence, and Colburn makes his hard bitten writer as an occasional comic relief. The surroundings of Pasadena adds to the allure, and it's delightful in it's sweep, under the guise of honest fiction. An independent sleeper. Grade: A

Being in the arts is difficult. It's damn near impossible to make a living doing something in this field because everyone wants to do it, and so much is gambled onto one product. Just look at all the hopeful actors and actresses who wait tables while praying for a big break into the movie business. You either hit it big, or end up in the gutter; there's hardly any middle ground. That is the situation that allows the events of George Hickenlooper's near masterful film, "The Man from Elysian Fields" to take place.

Byron Tiller (Andy Garcia) is a writer; he's got one book under his belt, but sales were in the tank. After his next book, which he spent 7 years working on, is rejected, he needs money...fast! Help comes from a man down the hall, named Luther Fox (Mick Jagger). He runs an escort service. Reluctantly, Byron agrees, which puts him into contact with Andrea Alcott (Olivia Williams), and her husband Tobias (James Coburn), who is a renowned author. But his newfound road to success may just cause him to lose his marriage to Dena (Juliana Margulies).

The acting is top notch. Andy Garcia plays Byron in his usual low key way, but he brings a level of depth to the character that is not usually seen in many films. Mick Jagger defies the trend of music stars churning out bomb movies because they can't act. Jagger plays Fox with a cracking wit, but he also is able to give the character some extraordinary depth. Olivia Williams is terrific as Byron's beautiful client. She loves her husband dearly, but she needs a release that he can no longer give her. Fortunately for her, Tobias understands that, and is perfectly fine with her sleeping with Byron. James Coburn is terrific as Tobias. Tobias is a dying writer who has accepted his fate with wit, if not grace. But he still has his pride. TV star Juliana Margulies has made only a few ventures into film, but she fits right in as Byron's loving and devoted wife.

Although the film has flaws, they are not with the screenplay. Simply put, this is one of the best screenplays I have ever heard. Every line has immense depth and intellect, and the wit crackles. There are a number of brilliant one-liners (the best one is not shown in the trailer, thank God). However, these are not the one-liners that appear so often in a David Spade movie. Instead, these are just very clever.

The problems I had with the film is that when the film enters dark territory, such as when it shows Byron at his most desperate, it becomes unpleasant, and it ruins the spell that the movie works so hard to cast. This is partly due to George Hickenlooper, but mainly because the actors play their parts so well.

This is a must-see for any adult film-goer who appreciates films with wit, depth and rich characters.