The Paperboy, 2012.
Written and Directed by Lee Daniels.
Starring Matthew McConaughey, Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, John Cusack, David Oyelowo, Scott Glenn and Macy Gray.
SYNOPSIS:
Tipped off by the enigmatic Charlotte (Nicole Kidman) that a local loner on death row (John Cusack) has been framed for the murder of the corrupt sheriff, they see a prize-winning piece in the making and embark on a journey to the swamplands to uncover the truth. But the deeper they delve, the murkier the waters become.
Simply put The Paperboy is a complete mess of a film, wasting a great cast. The film is all over the place in terms of story, narrative, and character motivation and rapidly falls apart, outstaying its welcome long before even the halfway mark.
Director Lee Daniels (Precious) is too concerned about making the film look ‘period’ to match its 1969 setting with – admittedly – a great range of colours and tones, and hoping source music will fill the gaps in tension or atmosphere where his direction is lacking to make the film remotely engaging. The Paperboy just doesn’t know what it wants to be and as the audience, this soon becomes frustratingly apparent.
The screenplay tries to be exploitative and shocking with scenes of S&M, sodomy, rough sex, and the now-infamous scene where Nicole Kidman pees on Zac Efron after he’s stung by jellyfish. These scenes are not shocking, just laughably ridiculous and only add to the contempt one feels for the camp nonsense which unfolds. The Paperboy wants us to laugh with it, but laughing at it is the only result.
The film isn’t a total write-off thanks to an excellent performance from Nicole Kidman who does her best with the crazy script, and a genuinely great score by Mario Grigorov who channels the late 60s / early 70s setting with music which deserves a much better film to be showcased. Aside from this, there is precious little reason why anyone should watch this film.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ / Movie: ★ ★
Rohan Morbey – follow me on Twitter.
Originally published March 15, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
