World Traveler

Billy Crudup stars in this slow moving film as "Cal", an architect who one day just walks out on his loving wife and son. What Cal is in search of we know not, but he is full of self-loathing for leaving and begins a drunken trek cross country. In his travels he meets a series of people who he treats like crap and then wallows in more self loathing and drink. The movie does end up with a moral; Cal realizes that he had it pretty good at home, but we don't realize this until we've sat through at least the first ninety minutes wondering where this movie and Cal, for that matter, are headed. Adding to the confusion are some flashback sequences that are never explained and have nothing to do with the ending what-so-ever. The only bright spot is when Cal meets up with Dulcie (Moore), and you think "Aha! I know where this movie is headed", and then it doesn't go that way at all. And that's a shame. Dulcie's story line is dropped just as the movie takes a turn towards being remotely interesting, and we are sent right back on Cal's boring journey. There is nothing redeemable in the character of Cal, and what he needs is a swift kick to the butt. Add to that a soundtrack that is ninety percent Willie Nelson songs, and you can see where a good shot of caffeine prior to watching this movie will come in handy. On an upnote, the cinematography was beautiful; it just should have been saved for a better movie. If you really need to be told that there's no place like home, watch "The Wizard of Oz" instead.

You get something like "World Traveler." This movie rang so false throughout that it was sort of like sitting through a not-so-gifted recital of Rachmaninoff. There's mastery somewhere in there but you just can't see or feel it. And maybe the only mastery in World Traveler was the memories of the performances of the cast in other roles, in other, far better movies. It is unforgivable to squander such talent.

And the story held such promise! A man leaves his perfect life to freewheel it, booze it up, get laid, have no responsibilities. I like that story. That this writer/director took it no further than the surface is a mysterious shame. Why write this if there is no motivation given? Why waste our time like this?

I really enjoyed this entire movie. It is not fast paced, but that is appropriate for the story line. People who think it plods along may need more action, but that is their issue. It is not formulaic, not a flickering screen every 5 seconds. Good acting by all actors -- especially leading man Billy Crudup as the man who thinks he can walk away, and supporting actress Julianne Moore as a delusional woman who claims to be escaping from her husband. This is a tough story about a man struggling to handle being a responsible adult, who makes some terrible choices while searching for answers. I believe the character finds out there are no easy answers and nothing will help him fully understand "why." I think this movie speaks about the many people who at times feel like lost souls, trying to figure out how they ended up where they are and wondering what would it be like to just leave it all behind. Turns out you can't really leave it all behind because your past life follows you and haunts you wherever you go. I recommend it.

I was disappointed to see the reviews that this film is getting here when I thought that it was a beautiful, subtle film that packed an emotional wallop.

"World Traveler" is a love letter to anyone who has ever drifted or run from circumstance be it the way the protagonist of Freundlich's film did by jumping in his car and taking off or be it via emotionally resigning from a situation or relationship.

If you are looking for a "set-up-pay-off" story line this is not it, nor is it a pretentious art film. It is an engrossing and emotionally honest film in the vein of a John Cheever short story and it is well worth the watch as is his Myth of Fingerprints.

Oh, and watch it alone.

This is a don't-waste-your-time movie. With all of the possible talent potential, why did they stoop so low? It isn't even interesting. Sure, there are quality films with unlikeable, narcissistic characters but this isn't one of them.There are no polite words to use in describing the main character. I kept it running while I read something interesting, waiting for it to get to the point, a point, any point. Never happened. Some have said that they liked the scenery. A travelogue or National Geographic would be more fun.I found it so uninteresting and pathetic that it is hard to even come up with enough to say about it to fill the required 10 lines of text for this review!