As ruthless investment banker Max Skinner, Russell Crowe seems right at home during the opening scenes of A Good Year. With his character belittling his employees and manipulating London’s financial market for his personal gain and his competitors’ ruin, the actor strides about in a cutthroat world not unlike the violent arena in his most famous film, Gladiator. However, when director Ridley Scott starts adding liberal doses of Frank Capra-corn to this tale of moral redemption, Crowe stumbles like a drunk on a rope bridge.
On getting the news that his beloved Uncle Henry (an underused Albert Finney) has died and left him a French winery, Skinner sets out to inspect the property to see how much he can get for it. However, a quick afternoon trip becomes more complicated when Skinner becomes reacquainted with the vineyard’s overseer (Didier Bourdon), who’s desperate to keep his position; meets a fiery local beauty (Archie Panjabi) who catches his eye; and finds out that his job and wealth may be in danger as a result of some questionable business practices that are under investigation. Suddenly this throwaway property becomes Skinner’s haven — until a young woman (Abbie Cornish), claiming to be Henry’s illegitimate daughter, shows up on his doorstep, putting Skinner’s ownership of the vineyard in question.
If you’re saying to yourself, “Man, that’s one busy weekend!” you’re not alone. Equally implausible is the change Skinner undergoes as his mercenary ways are magically transformed into feelings of generosity and love simply because he spends a few tranquil days in the French countryside. Crowe and Scott try too hard to bring an air of frivolity, which doesn’t suit them, to the film. Known for his hard-edged thrillers (Alien, Black Hawk Down, Kingdom of Heaven), Scott is adrift here as he tries to use awkward musical passages to lighten the mood and employs quick-cut editing to jumpstart the pace. Crowe’s in the same boat, and it becomes painfully apparently that romantic comedy is not his strong suit. Give Crowe an A for effort here but a D for his performance.
This article appears in Nov 2-8, 2006.
