Wish You Were Here
Julia Stiles makes decent feature directorial debut with weepie which leaves critic dry-eyed.
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Actress-turned-filmmaker Julia Stiles makes her feature directorial debut with “Wish You Were Here” (available in select theaters beginning Friday, Jan. 17), an adaptation of Renée Carlino’s 2017 novel of the same name. (Carlino co-scripted with Stiles.)
Isabelle Fuhrman stars as Charlotte, a directionless young woman in her late 20s who works a thankless waitressing job at a shoddy Mexican restaurant alongside her bestie/roomie Helen (Gabby Kono-Abdy). Charlotte’s Mom (Jennifer Grey, Baby’s on a roll after the recent “A Real Pain”) and Dad (Kelsey Grammer) are worried about their listless daughter.
Charlotte’s enlivened when she randomly meets and spends a romantic evening with Adam (Mena Massoud, he was the title character in Guy Ritchie’s “Aladdin”), but this feeling is fleeting as he disappears afterwards. Another prospective suitor enters Charlotte’s orbit in the form of Seth (Jimmie Fails, late of “Nickel Boys”), a buddy of Roddy (Josh Caras), Helen’s new boo.
Turns out Adam has a good reason for ghosting Charlotte. He’s terminally ill. She takes it upon herself to make sure he lives life to the fullest with what time he has left.
I’m all for a good weepie. “We Live in Time” made my Top 10 of 2024 after all! But this one didn’t connect with me entirely. I had the pleasure of interviewing Fuhrman a few years ago for her film “The Novice” (interview here) and found her to be a warm presence. This warmth definitely extends to her performance as Charlotte. She makes for a hugely likable protagonist. I just wish she and Massoud had more chemistry. I was kind of rooting for her to get with Seth the entire time as Fails is the more appealing performer (to me at least) despite Adam’s tragic circumstances. My wants worked in stark juxtaposition to the movie’s goals leaving me dry-eyed at its conclusion and I’m an easy mark who cries at one out of every four movies he watches on average. I wanted to cry. I tend to find it therapeutic. This film didn’t get me there.
Stiles’ direction displays some style and panache. She shows good taste on a lot of fronts. I definitely enjoyed the multiple Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats needle drops. (I’m looking forward to seeing them with my wife and our friend at the Fishers Event Center in Fishers, Ind. this March!) Stiles must also be easy to work with because she cast many performers of whom she’d previously acted opposite – Fuhrman (“Orphan: First Kill”), Grammer (“The God Committee”) and Jordan Gavaris from the Prime Video series “The Lake” who plays Charlotte’s brother Chucky.
When it comes to “Wish You Were Here” there aren’t “10 Things I Hate About You,” but I also wouldn’t “Save the Last Dance” for it. “O,” I wish it made me feel more. I would’ve loved to have even cracked a “Mona Lisa Smile,” but alas it’s simply a promising directorial debut for Stiles while also being a case of unfulfilled promise. If there are “Silver Linings” in Stiles’ “Playbook” it’s Fuhrman’s performance and Rateliff’s music.