It’s been a long time since we’ve seenJerry Lewisin a movie, but it’s not like we haven’t been hearing about his career in the meantime. Long after the French heralded his ouevre as a director and a writer, his career has received a few major, positive reappraisals from several writers, includingThe New Yorker’s endlessly thoughtful editor-bloggerRichard Brody, and his lost possible masterpiece,The Day the Clown Cried, has been teased consistently over the last few years. There’s a chance we’ll be seeing that film sooner than later, but for the time being, there’sMax Rose,Daniel Noah’s upcoming comedic drama that stars Lewis as a jazz legend who discovers evidence that his late wife was carrying on a life-long affair.
The first trailer for the film, which you can take a look at below, reveals a handsomely lensed, obviously personal drama revolving around Lewis' Rose and his relationship with his daughter (Halt and Catch FirebreakoutKerry Bishé), as well as the search for what happened with his wife and is own career. There’s not a whole lot to the premise, but the trailer evokes a rare, crucial kind of intimacy that is often missing from movies about aging, with the notable exception of masterworks likeAbout Schmidt,Harry & Tonto, andMake Way for Tomorrow. And for Lewis, this seems like a perfect sort of personal performance that he probably wasn’t looking for but found all the same, in the same vein as his sensational work inMartin Scorsese’s equally sensationalThe King of Comedy. In a Fall/Winter seasons packed with big-ticket blockbusters, Oscar hopefuls, and limp comedies,Max Rosehas the faint scent of a real gem.
Here’s the first trailer forMax Rose:
Here’s the synopsis forMax Rose:
A jazz pianist makes a discovery days before the death of his wife that causes him to believe his sixty-five year marriage was a lie. He embarks on an exploration of his own past that brings him face to face with a menagerie of characters from a bygone era.
