Duane Hopwood

For David Schwimmer making a name in feature films has, and will most likely continue to be a tall order, as it's tough to shed an image honed for over a decade. His first post- Friends feature is 2005's Duane Hopwood , a small film praised by critics that was only given a limited theatrical release.

Duane Hopwood is a man who once had it all, including a loving wife (Janeane Garofalo) and two daughters. Now that he's an alcoholic, all Duane has left is his cushy job as a pit boss at Caesar's Palace in Atlantic City. Now divorced, his downfall accelerates when he's stopped for drunk driving with his daughter in the car. A judge goes somewhat easy on Duane, only revoking his driver's license. He uses a bicycle to get to work until his friend and co-worker Anthony (Judah Friedlander) moves in with him and drives him to work. All that Duane wants is to spend time with his kids and get back with his wife, but numerous glasses of scotch and cans of beer always get in the way.

To say David Schwimmer has arrived as a serious actor is a major understatement. His portrayal of a man spiraling downward fast is more than Oscar worthy, as this character's problems only start with dependence. His is a straightforward, dramatic account, but Schwimmer levels things out by bringing a sly sense of humor to the proceedings when necessary. Simply, David Schwimmer blew me away in this film.

Duane Hopwood is tough at times to watch, as any man with children is bound to choke up watching the title character's hardships. Writer/director Matt Mulhern begins his film with a montage of Duane's good times, laughing with his wife and kids before making the pivotal decision of stopping at a bar one night—soon after, we have a front row seat to his demise. Mulhern's pacing is excellent; so much happens in the film that it's hard to believe the running time is a mere 80 minutes. Judah Friedlander, one of the great character actors, embodies Anthony, who gives Duane enough comedy in his life to keep him afloat. Dick Cavett also pops up as Duane's neighbor, and Janeane Garofalo gives her best performance in years as Duane's wife.

Ending a film like this can be difficult. Mulhern treads this carefully, and pulls off a satisfying and realistic conclusion. One comes away feeling truly sorry for this loving father who is crippled by addiction, as so many people are, and his resulting inability to make rational and intelligent decisions. Hopefully, more people will discover this film now that it's widely available, if only to find that David Schwimmer has the acting chops to potentially enjoy a lucrative movie career. Oh, and who is this Ross guy, anyway? I've already forgotten.

As a father of a 9-month old perfect baby girl whose wife left him because of pretty much the same circumstances that Duane experienced (save for the DUI and the forced baseball bat incident), my question is why did he not fight his ex-wife's decision to relocate his daughters to another state for a guy who can barely make it at managing a gym? "We'll arrange visitation in a couple of months."!! No way.

Any real Dad who loves his babies would never smile, ride on a bike and in a funny costume next to a car carrying away his life, then attend a Thanksgiving meal and make a toast.

The movie, however, was a decent showing of how addiction destroys families. That part was accurate. Redemption was ignored.

Guess I was just disappointed because I wanted very badly for Duane to accept treatment, turn his ass around, and pursue this "second chance" that the trailer promised. Where was that second chance that was promised? Never came.

I loved this film -- it's very well done with a great performance from David Schwimmer. Schwimmer plays a casino pit boss who gradually goes down hill and hits bottom when he's caught driving drunk with his young daughter in the back seat. It's the wake-up call he needs, though,as ex-wife Janeane Garofalo threatens to take away his visitation rights to his two girls. Schwimmer gradually begins to get it together when he forms an unlikely friendship with Judah Friedlander, who as always is funny and brings some much-needed humor to the film. It's like a wonderful short story with a great cast of characters set in a unique place. I highly recommend it.

One of the perils of being known for a particular role is that its hard to shed that image. David Schwimmer, like the rest of the cast of "Friends" is not financially strapped for cash nor will he ever be. But as an actor, he's trying to break the mold of Ross Gellar (his character on "Friends") that he played for a decade. Of all the "Friends", Jennifer Aniston seems to have made the most out of the show – though all of them have had their ups and downs. I'm leading up to something, bear with me here…It was nice to see a major star like David Schwimmer in a very low-budget, independent film. Add to that the character he plays is the polar opposite of "Ross", it was a stretch for him and he did a good job with his role in "Duane Hopwood". The film was written and directed by Matt Mulhern, himself an actor most remembered for his roles in "One Crazy Summer" and "Biloxi Blues". What's most intriguing about the movie is that the director and stars are all mainly known for their comedic performances (Janeane Garofalo plays Hopwood's ex-wife).

"Duane Hopwood" isn't an easy movie to watch, any movie that deals with the problem of alcoholism is hit or miss. It's easy for actors to try and do too much in their "state" and try to ham it up for the cameras. Schwimmer takes the low road and lets us know that his character has a drinking problem, but doesn't feel the need to rub it in our faces. Duane Hopwood (David Schwimmer) is a casino pit boss at Caesar's Palace in Atlantic City. He's divorced and isn't too happy with his life. He gets pulled over for drunk driving with his daughter in the car and has his license revoked. His only means to get to work is via bicycle. Throughout the course of the movie, we see him try to rebuild his life – trying to reconcile with his estranged wife (only to finally accept that she's moved on). Like most people with a drinking problem, Duane won't admit that he really has a problem – yet it's evident to everyone else. His friend (and later roommate) Anthony (Judah Friedlander) is his inspiration. Anthony wants to be a stand up comedian and it angers Duane that he's following his dreams.

The real message in the movie is about starting over. I don't want to give away the ending, but movies about drunks can only end so many ways and most aren't too satisfying. I have to admit that I was pretty impressed by Janeane Garofalo's performance. She tends to play the same character in most every movie she's in and wit her bleached blonde locks, I hardly recognized her. And speaking of the cast, look for Dick Cavett in the small role of Fred another odd casting choice that seemed to work out. I don't know how personal this was to Matt Mulhern or if he's had problems with alcohol or substance abuse in the past, but as downtrodden as the script was; the performances were great and made the short running time spread out. As I mentioned before, the movie isn't easy to watch but it's quite rewarding.

Duane Hopwood is a film about ordinary people whose problems are no different than yours or mine. Hopwood is a man who loves his wife and wants to be a good father to his children, and is losing everything because of his penchant for hitting the bottle. Hopwood is not a mean or tragic drunk figure. He's simply a sad man whose days are sometimes joyful, oftentimes not. With his drunkenness Hopwood's wife Linda is not callous about it. She understands Duane has a problem. But, she can only put up with so much. And when he drives drunk with one of their daughters in the back seat, she goes to divorce court. What's done is done. Linda is finished with dealing with Duane's alcoholism; now it is about looking out for her (not their) kids' welfare.

David Schwimmer plays Duane Hopwood, and his performance surpasses everything he's ever done on Friends. Television shows are like that. When they become popular it is hard to separate the character from the actor. As Duane, Schwimmer has unfixed the stigma he got from being Ross all those years. He has friends in the film, but he's mostly by himself, trying to live his life in Atlantic City. During the wee hours of the morning he pedals his bicycle to his job so he can work a 3 to 12 shift as a pit boss at Caesars. Why the bicycle? The incident with his daughter in the back seat caused him to have his license revoked. Writer-director Matt Mulhernnails home the point of alcoholism. Those who are addicted to the bottle do not think they're alcoholics. "I drink too much sometimes, but Linda, come on, I'm not a drunk," Duane pleads with his ex-wife. Barflies may get drunk, but that's their thing. Duane endangered a daughter he loves, lost his family through divorce, and still cannot stop himself from going to a bar after getting off at noon. Duane can't control his drinking habits. He either drinks way too much or just too much. Sometimes he doesn't drink at all. Alcohol just wasn't becoming that day.

For all I have written about drinking and alcohol, one might think Duane Hopwood is a dreary movie. Well, it is dreary but not because of the subject matter. The grayness of Atlantic City during the winter gives off a ghost town vibe. It's the off-season for tourists, so the town lacks life. Taking away the obsessive drinking aspect, you are left with a guy who wakes up when many are asleep, trying to be professional working the late-night shift at a casino where customers are sparse, and hating that his one true love is now in love with somebody else.