Nat Wolff takes the lead as another “teenage heartthrob” (see: Paper Towns, The Fault in Our Stars) in the latest coming of age film Ashby. Doing what he’s proven he does best, Wolff takes the “boy likes girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl” situation to pleasurable, although not groundbreaking, heights. Director Tony McNamara, known for his extensive TV experience, tries his hand at the long form narrative but can’t shake the “made for TV” vibe throughout. While a pleasing attempt at a feature debut, it’s hard to imagine Ashby will have too much staying power past its theatrical release.
Wolff plays Ed Wallis, the new kid who recently transferred into an Oregon high school. His extensive knowledge of Ernest Hemingway in the film’s first scene is unexpected, yet very engaging. Perhaps this is not just another teen rom-com after all? Ed describes Hemingway’s life as a daily struggle. A man who believed that in order to prove his manhood, one must try to get killed and overcome it. Not a discreet enough reference to render it pointless, we assume he must be foreshadowing the film’s titular character Ashby, played by Mickey Rourke.
Despite Ashby‘s inherent “teen drama” formula, the juggling of storylines and non-fluid editing makes me think that this movie would have been better served as a television series rather than feature film…
Ed meets Ashby when he is assigned to write a 2,000-word paper on an “old person,” and turns to his kooky next-door neighbor. Clearly not the ‘former napkin and straw salesman’ he claims to be, Ed knows there is much more to Ashby than he is letting on. After finding a stack of passports (which I’m pretty sure were old pictures of Rourke from Google images), guns, and knives littered throughout his house, Ashby confesses to being a hired assassin. Their relationship grows throughout the course of the film and they find each needing the other one more than either of them could have imagined.
The film’s biggest con is having three parallel story lines which all center around Ed, making for one watered down film. The first is Ed’s coming of age learning experiences with his next door neighbor. The second is some minor teenage angst in dealing with a strained relationship with his absentee father (he lives with his mother played by Sarah Silverman). The third is a high school romance with the nerdiest girl in school, Eloise (Emma Roberts). Their relationship is put to the test when Ed joins the football team and must decide where his priorities lie.
Roberts, who shares the screen with Wolff in Gia Coppola’s Palo Alto, effortlessly captures your attention onscreen, but can’t shake the screenwriter’s stereotypical, one-dimensional character that Eloise was written as.
It is so good to see Mickey Rourke on the big screen, even if his talents aren’t being utilized to their fullest here. His masculine yet compassionate and comedic performance hits every note just right and leaves us wanting more. Despite Ashby‘s inherent “teen drama” formula, the juggling of storylines and the seemingly unintentional off-kilter editing, makes me think that this movie would have been better served as a television series rather than feature film, but it is enjoyable nonetheless.
Ashby is in select theaters, on Demand and digital HD September 25th.
