Windfall
Frequent collaborators drop neo-noir thriller on Netflix.
Film Yap is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
I’d never seen a movie of Charlie McDowell’s prior to watching “Windfall” (now streaming on Netflix). McDowell, the son of actors Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen, built a solid reputation with his directorial debut "The One I Love.” His sophomore effort “The Discovery” wasn’t nearly as well received. “Windfall” impressed me on a lot of fronts – it’s a three-hander chamber piece, a neo-noir thriller and a commentary on consumerism – and it’s largely successful on all of these levels.
We open on Nobody (no, not Bob Odenkirk – it’s Jason Segel) as he’s making himself comfortable at a vacation home belonging to some other folks. Nobody downs a glass of orange juice and disdainfully chucks the empty glass, takes a leisurely stroll through an orange grove and helps himself to a Rolex and a fat stack of cash. The house belongs to CEO (Jesse Plemons) and his Wife (McDowell’s real-life wife Lily Collins). Nobody is surprised by the couple’s arrival at their abode just as he was about to make his escape. Caught in the act, he opts to take them hostage.
“Windfall” rests on a rather thin premise, which is stretched to its limits over a scant 92 minute runtime. I suspect it would’ve worked better as a short as opposed to a feature. Thankfully, McDowell’s cast comes to play and they make the material sing.
I’m a fan of Segel’s dating back to “Freaks and Geeks” and have enjoyed his comedic works on screens small (“How I Met Your Mother”) and big (“Knocked Up,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” “I Love You, Man,” “The Muppets”). His only serious turn I’ve seen is “The End of the Tour,” where he played author David Foster Wallace and was effective. He’s equally assured here playing a put upon everyman who’s looking to level the playing field through criminal means.
Plemons, one of our best working character actors, does a total about-face from his recent Oscar-nominated performance in “The Power of the Dog” as the priggish CEO. Despite being deplorable, this is likely the best Plemons has ever looked on screen – what a difference a cool shirt and haircut make! Plemons makes a meal out of his dialogue and does the movie’s best acting.
I haven’t seen Collins in much (unlike Peyton Manning I’m not an “Emily in Paris” devotee). She’s been in films both good (“The Blind Side,” “Okja” and “Mank”) and bad (the hilariously horrid Taylor Lautner actioneer “Abducted,” “Priest” (2011)). This is probably the best work I’ve seen her do to date. With the turn Wife takes, this had to be an interesting project for relative newlyweds Collins and McDowell to tackle together. Art as therapy … yay!
Movies are a collaborative/communal medium and “Windfall” seems to personify this. Segal and Plemons (both of whom appeared in “The Discovery”) as well as Collins all served as producers on the picture. McDowell and Segal received story credit alongside “Seven” screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker and Justin Lader (who scribed “The One I Love” and “The Discovery”). Composers Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans collaborate with McDowell again by contributing an awesomely bombastic score that’s evocative of noirs from the 1940s and 1950s … cool opening credits further this vibe.
These folks work well enough together that I need to backtrack and catch their previous collaborations. Additionally, I’ll be curious to see whatever they’re cooking up next (McDowell, Lader and Collins are currently in pre-production on a little ditty entitled “Gilded Rage”). Count me in!