Blu-Ray Review: Don’t Miss Joaquin Phoenix in Excellent ‘Two Lovers’

CHICAGO – James Gray’s highly underrated and tragically underseen “Two Lovers” will undoubtedly find a loyal and loving audience on Blu-Ray. Joaquin Phoenix’s totally obnoxious behavior overshadowed what is arguably the best performance of his career in this ’70s-esque drama about a man caught between what he has and what he wants.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.5/5.0

Happiness is not having what you want, it’s wanting what you have. Poor Leonard (Joaquin Phoenix) can’t figure out either in “Two Lovers,” a daringly old-fashioned drama with an undeniably ’70s style but themes as old as the written word.

Two Lovers was released on Blu-Ray on June 30th, 2009.
Photo credit: Magnolia

Leonard is a suicidal romantic, a victim of a failed engagement a few years back who is awkwardly set up with the lovely Sandra (Vinessa Shaw) by his parents (Moni Moshonov & Isabella Rossellini). She is a beautiful, sweet girl and the two hit it off but Leonard is far more intrigued by the dangerous girl across the alley, the troubled Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow).

Michelle is everything that Sandra is not, right down to the color of her hair. She’s a club girl with drug problems and happens to the mistress of a married man (Elias Koteas). Leonard is a shy, nice friend, but nothing more. She’s the perfect object of affection for a suicidal Romeo like Leonard.

Two Lovers was released on Blu-Ray on June 30th, 2009. Photo credit: Magnolia

Sandra and Michelle could almost be figments of Leonard’s imagination. They are the incredibly common archetypes of romance. Sandra is the girl who comes to Leonard, both as a set-up by her father and eventually to his bed. She is a sweet, beautiful girl that anyone would love to call wife, but it’s too easy for Leonard. He’s drawn to the opposite. He’d rather have the mistress than the potential wife and rather chase the vision across the alley than the one willing to come into his room.

Throughout all kinds of fiction and in cities around the world, young men will forever chase girl A and not realize until it’s possibly too late that girl B was the right one for him. James Gray’s script for “Two Lovers,” co-written by Richard Menello, understands this vicious romantic cycle better than any in a long time.

And Gray directs this great script with a style you don’t see that often any more. Don’t expect pop music montages or gross-out humor. Gray shoots most of “Two Lovers” from a distance. There’s a fantastic scene outside a night club that features no close-up, almost as if we are on the street with Leonard and Michelle, overhearing their conversation. The handheld, believable style is reminiscent of the dramas of the ’70s.

Even with its expert direction, easily the best of Gray’s career, and very good screenplay, “Two Lovers” wouldn’t work without its cast and they’re all excellent. Paltrow may seem miscast but I found her vibrant and engaging, more so than she has been in years and Shaw is perfect, but this is Phoenix’s vehicle all the way. He’s in nearly every scene and he rocks. It’s one of the best male performances of 2009 to date.

“Two Lovers” is a wonderfully shot film and I’m ecstastic that Magnolia chose to release a relatively small film (at the box office) on Blu-Ray. Not every Blu-Ray release in your collection should be CGI overload. Drama can look great in HD too.

“Two Lovers” is presented in 1080P with a 2.40:1 aspect ratio and accompanied by an excellent 5.1 DTS-HD audio track.

Special features include a commentary by director James Gray, behind-the-scenes featurette, deleted scenes, photo gallery, and HDNet: A Look at Two Lovers.

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com