Poor Man’s American Graffiti: Diner feels remarkably familiar all the way through. It’s a pretty classic coming-of-age story that has elements similar to The Graduate, Stand By Me, and the first half of The Deer Hunter. American Graffiti also has these elements, but it also has Harrison Ford.
★★★☆☆
Ok, let’s address something here before we move onto the review of Diner. What the fuck is wrong with Josh? Like Animal House, High Noon, and The Sting before them, Josh took a great film and gave it an average rating. The above maybe we can write off as differences in taste, but No Country for Old Men?! I’m pretty sure Josh is now an alien wearing a Josh-suit; someone check and see if he has a sudden desire for sugar water, then call Will Smith. No Country for Old Men is a five star movie. Josh can think what he wants about the ending. I will not argue with him, because it will be literally impossible to convince him that he is wrong about his feelings about the ending. However, I might be able to convince him that the rest of this movie makes his feelings about the ending totally irrelevant. Every scene, and I mean every scene, is perfectly crafted in this film. The lighting, the blocking, the dialogue, and music (or lack of the last two)- this movie gives me chills like few other films. The fight scenes between Moss and Chigurh are amazing. Every character is unique, round, and amazing. Any scene with Chigurh is mind blowing, but the gas station scene kicks more ass than thought possible (DO YOU HEAR THAT WRAPPER CRINKLE, IT’S THE SOUND OF TENSION!!). Moss’s scenes are also crazy good, but because despite having sparse dialogue, Josh Brolin destroys every scene. Also, let’s talk about the fact that the movie creates amazing tension and emotion, with nearly NO MUSIC. Here we get to my fundamental problem with Josh’s review: There is no way to improve on the craftsmanship of the movie. There may be artistic differences that Josh disagrees with, but it doesn’t change the perfection of the filmmaking.
Ok, now that I’m all riled up, let’s talk about Diner. This is a coming-of-age, ensemble cast film from 1982. In order from least to most recognizable with have Tim Daly (voice of Superman in the 90’s animated series), Steve Guttenberg (Mahoney from the Police Academy series), Paul Reiser (Burke from Aliens), Mickey Rourke (Ivan Vanko from Iron Man 2), Daniel Stern (Marv from Home Alone), and Kevin Bacon (Jake Briggs from She’s Having a Baby). This group of friends are all college age kids in Baltimore 1959, and they’ve all come home during Christmas break for Steve Guttenberg’s wedding. The coming-of-age piece of this movie feels very familiar. Each of the characters deal with their early twenties, an age apparently ripe for filmmakers to explore.
This film is an ensemble film through and through. Every character has a unique storyline and each story line is given its due time on film (almost). Tim Daly deals with getting a girl pregnant. Steve Guttenberg deals with the stress of his upcoming nuptials. Mickey Rourke deals with his gambling addiction. Daniel Stern deals with being married. Kevin Bacon works on controlling his temper and growing up a bit. Paul Reiser is an exception, being purely glue to tie everyone together. However, my favorite part of this film is that the whole group is rarely together. Like a typical group of friends, pairs break off, groups go on dates, and individuals deal with their respective storylines. But in the end, they all meet up at the titular diner for gravy fries and a night of bullshitting with old friends.
For me, the highlight of this film is the dialogue. It feels very natural. The actors sit and chat like you’d expect from grade school friends. I think the dialogue is even better than Kevin Smith’s, because it doesn’t feel as important. It feels more real. Both Clerks and Diner are super quotable, but Diner feels like a true conversation, with all it’s bumps and turns. Clerks sometimes feels like the highlights of a conversation, with all the best parts brought together. Throughout the film there were many moments that reminded me of my own friendships. The film’s first diner scene starts with a conversation about who’s the better singer, Sinatra or Mathis. The conversation is the first time we really get to see every character’s voice and the dialogue reminds me of any conversation I’ve ever had about who’s the better pitcher, quarterback, writer, or artist. The friends joke with each other, tease each other, argue, and eat. At the end of the conversation, no victor is crowned. They’ve agreed to disagree and moved on with their lives.
Ultimately, this is a good movie, but not a great one. The dialogue is great, but the story is a coming-of-age drama that has probably repeated itself across millennia since people first told stories. And, unfortunately, there’s nothing particularly fantastic about this retelling. The characters are fun and the stakes aren’t too high. This is a good film to sit down and watch with some good friends and a few beers, but it’s no No Country for Old Men.
Diner doesn’t appear to be available to stream anywhere, sorry!
It appears I’ve been off on my scheduling. THIS week, not last week, Josh will be watching In Bruges. It’s still awesome, check it out!
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