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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   “(Untitled)” A nicely cast film that looks at some of the absurdities of the New York art scene but also manages to take art itself seriously. Adam Goldberg is an obscure composer whose work repels audiences, Eion Bailey is his financially successful painter brother and Marley Shelton is the gallery owner who juggles them. Rated: R for language, subject matter Showing: Seven Gables   CONTACT THE HERALD Melanie Munk, Features Editor munk@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, November 13, 2009 Art world’s absurdities make fine fodder for ‘(Untitled)’ By Robert Horton Herald Movie Critic If “(Untitled)” were just a spoof of the New York gallery scene, with easy potshots at the wiggier boundaries of contemporary art, it would be funny enough. There are some good gags in the picture. But this movie is up to something more than spoofery and it sticks in the mind for that reason. It’s both amused and intrigued by its subject. At the center of the film’s world is Adrian (Adam Goldberg), a navel-gazing composer whose ensemble performances are marked by a lot of screeching, crashing and audience walkouts. Adding to his misery is the fact that his brother, Josh (Eion Bailey), is a successful painter. Josh’s large, soothing, inoffensive canvases have proved popular in hospitals and office buildings, so he practically sells them in bulk. Josh’s success has been a boon for his art dealer, Madeleine (Marley Shelton, from the “Grindhouse” movies). She runs a chic downtown gallery and knows Josh’s stuff is junk, but his sales allow her to support obscure, difficult clients. Josh is under the impression they’re romantically involved, but Madeleine pursues the brooding Adrian. Meanwhile, we meet the pretentious members of her circle, including a dippy collector (Zak Orth, just right), a famous conceptual sculptor (Vinnie Jones) and a minimalist artist (Ptolemy Slocum) who takes found objects and then, by the looks of it, doesn’t do anything with them. Just as we’re enjoying these caricatures, we might notice that Adrian is something of a hypocrite — he rejects difficult artists just as audiences keep rejecting his own bizarre work. That’s when you realize director Jonathan Parker and co-writer Catherine DiNapoli, who also did the very peculiar Herman Melville adaptation “Bartleby,” are trying something beyond ridicule. While they recognize the absurdities of the contemporary art world and the hot air that drifts through it, they take art itself seriously. Soon each of the main characters is confronted by a dilemma, or two, or three — and we are made to feel how tricky these problems are. Adrian hates people but covertly seeks acceptance; Josh makes a fortune but wants to be taken seriously. I wish the film’s final 20 minutes or so didn’t feel overly neat, but it’s still a worthwhile effort. The cast is able and Adam Goldberg (recently seen worrying his way through “2 Days in Paris”) is especially skilled at turning dialogue in a droll direction. A movie this cagey, this interested in seeing things from different angles, and leaving the viewer to make up his own mind, could only be called one thing, of course. It had to be untitled. “(Untitled)” A nicely cast film that looks at some of the absurdities of the New York art scene but also manages to take art itself seriously. Adam Goldberg is an obscure composer whose work repels audiences, Eion Bailey is his financially successful painter brother and Marley Shelton is the gallery owner who juggles them. Rated: R for language, subject matter Showing: Seven Gables READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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