Don't Worry He Won't Get Far On Foot (2018)

Gus Van Sant wrote and directed one of my all time favourite films, My Own Private Idaho, and is responsible for a number of other films I love. But he hasn't made anything I've been interested in for a while. So Don't Worry He Can't Get Far On Foot, is a reminder to me of what I loved about his work. His adaptation of the life story of artist John Callahan manages to be rather intimate and beautiful. Capturing the journey of recovery can feel cliche yet Van Sant finds an way to tell this story that feels honest.

Structured as a series of conversations, Don't Worry chronicles Callahan's trip through sobriety. Callahan's reputation is rather controversial but Van Sant doesn't focus on that, instead making this much more about his inner struggles than his outer ones. Like many of his films, Van Sant is interested here in odd characters, outsiders, and finding the remarkable, beautiful things about them. The people in Callahan's life fit that esthetic perfectly. Is this love letter a bit of a soft ball? Sure it is. Clearly Van Sant is taken with Callahan and isn't up to challenging him. That's not what this is about. But what makes Don't Worry work for me is the way Van Sant uses his strength about getting us into the minds and hearts of his outsiders, making us the outsiders, to put those on the margins in the centre.

Joaquin Phoenix is the sort of actor who appears to love parts he gets to be extreme in. Bad hair, funny glasses, non-supermodel bodies? All the better. Here is another, yet within that he finds quieter moments where he can truly shine. His Callahan isn't a provocateur but an addict fighting his way through adapting to sobriety coupled with paralysis. And his triumph isn't a rags to riches story but focuses completely on his well being, not his fame. Yes I know we wouldn't be telling his story if he lived of state support his whole life and didn't piss people off with his comics, but the movie and Phoenix aren't interested in that.

To be honest I enjoyed Jack Black and Jonah Hill the most, both playing against type and playing their parts with unexpected sensitivity. Hill has gotten some praise for roles I felt were overrated but this one he shows us he deserves to be seen as a capital A actor. The depth he brings to a character who could have easily been a series of boilerplate mannerisms is remarkable.

Don't Worry He Can't Get Far On Foot reminded me of what I love about the best of Van Sant's work and made me want to see what he might take on next.

Don't Worry He Can't Get Far On Foot
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Jonah Hill, Rooney Mara, Jack Black
Writer/Director: Gus Van Sant