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| Courtesy of Open Road |
If
Jon Stewart ever gets tired of hosting The Daily Show, one of television’s
funniest, most vital programs, he’s now got a promising filmmaking career to
fall back on. The Comedy Central mainstay makes his screenwriting and
directorial debut with this earnest, uplifting drama based on a true account that
his TV show inadvertently set into motion.
Rosewater tells the story of Maziar Bahari (Gael Garcia Bernal), an Iranian-born
journalist who lives in London and writes for Newsweek. He returns to his home
country on the eve of the controversial 2009 presidential election to cover the
process, as well as the ensuing protests over the fraudulent results.
He
also participates in a trademark fake news story for The Daily Show, in which
correspondent Jason Jones (playing himself) pretends to be an idiotic reporter who
refuses to believe Iran and the United States have anything in common. The
intensely clever Bahari is in on the joke, managing to be funny while also
explaining to viewers that both countries have a common enemy in Al Qaeda.
The
Iranian government doesn’t find the piece as entertaining. In fact, they use it
to accuse Bahari of being a spy, subjecting him to torture and interrogation over
the next 118 days.
Considering
the basic outline of the plot, I’d understand if people dismissed the film as
preachy and moralizing, something you watch as homework instead of
entertainment. But those who write off Stewart’s passion project will miss out
on a powerful story anchored by a strong, surprisingly funny central
performance.
Watch
any interview with the real-life Bahari and you’ll immediately pick up on his
warmth, intellect and great sense of humor. Bernal, in one of the best
performances of his career, charmingly demonstrates those aspects of the
journalist’s personality. The scenes featuring his relationship with his pregnant
fiancée (Claire Foy) – depicted in flashback – are sweet and hilarious,
perfectly capturing the weird sense of humor that couples develop after a
while.
That
comedy is more than welcome in the second half of Rosewater, set almost
exclusively in the prison where Bahari spent nearly three months blindfolded in
solitary confinement. While certainly intense, refusing to shy away from how
dehumanizing that time must have been for the political prisoner, the scenes
are not the grim slog audiences might expect from the film’s trailer.
Instead,
Stewart and Bernal emphasize how Bahari was able to use humor as both a coping
mechanism by holding witty, imaginary conversations with his deceased father
and sister, and dancing to Leonard Cohen songs he can only hear in his head; and
also as a weapon, unveiling his tormentor (Kim Bodina) as a sexually-repressed
buffoon.
Stewart
does an admirable job as a first-time director, giving the film a distinct
visual style and incorporating occasional creative touches – like projecting
Bahari’s relatives in storefront windows and depicting the Iranian uprising
with thousands of Twitter hashtags. Cynical viewers might roll their eyes at
the earnest flourishes, but I thought they were authentic reflections of
Stewart and Bahari’s personalities.
Rosewater probably won’t gain much traction during awards season, but it’s still an
important, uplifting story told in an entertaining way. You don’t have to be a
news junkie or a political expert to appreciate the human emotions on display.
Rosewater is rated R for language including some crude references, and violent content.
Grade:
B+
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