Improvised short stories fuel hit-and-miss ‘Digging’

  • By Robert Horton Herald Movie Critic
  • Wednesday, August 26, 2015 4:03pm
  • LifeGo-See-Do

The final credit on “Digging for Fire” is a dedication to the late Paul Mazursky, the director of “Bob &Carol &Ted &Alice” and “An Unmarried Woman” and other bittersweet comedies of manners. It can be presumptuous for a young filmmaker — here, mumblecore maven Joe Swanberg — to invoke a predecessor.

But in this case, fair enough. “Digging for Fire” has aspects that do indeed recall Mazursky’s movies: a sunburnt L.A. location, an undercurrent of satire directed at its floundering characters, and close attention to actors. Some pretentiousness, too, although in this case everything goes down pretty easily.

While Tim (Jake Johnson) and Lee (Rosemarie DeWitt, of “Touchy Feely”) house-sit in a rambling mansion far above their pay grade (she’s a yoga instructor to a rich person who’s lent them the place for a while), they decide to spend a weekend apart.

Lee takes their toddler son (Jude Swanberg) to stay with her family (Judith Light and Sam Elliott), while Tim stays home to party with buddies (Sam Rockwell and Mike Birbiglia among them).

Tim can’t concentrate because he’s found an old bone and a rusted handgun on the property. Surely there’s a story there, and before long he and the ever-growing party — Brie Larson and Anna Kendrick are in the mix, too — are randomly digging up the yard in search of anything interesting. (As a metaphor for Swanberg’s customary improv filmmaking style, this is almost too apt.)

Lee, meanwhile, has an adventure when left to her own devices. This material (Swanberg co-wrote the film with Johnson, after they worked together on “Drinking Buddies”) comes across like a short story written by a first-time author, an effect not helped by improvisation.

Most scenes end in middle-of-the-road insights offered by well-intentioned actors. The film is maybe more L.A. than it thinks it is.

If that fumbling style is an acquired taste, “Digging for Fire” nevertheless hits some surprisingly enjoyable notes. And certain actors thrive in this freewheeling atmosphere; Melanie Lynsky and Ron Livingston, as Lee’s married friends, suggest a whole life together in their limited appearance.

Comedian Birbiglia is terrific as Tim’s square pal — you keep wishing the movie would veer toward him, rather than Rockwell’s beer-swilling boor. And Orlando Bloom is more intriguing in 15 minutes of screen time here than he was in the entirety of “Elizabethtown” (or any other Orlando Bloom movie, for that matter). That alone is justification of Swanberg’s actor-oriented approach.

“Digging for Fire” (2½ stars)

An L.A. couple (Jake Johnson, Rosemarie DeWitt) spend a weekend apart, and each have adventures. This partly-improvised film by Joe Swanberg has too many middle-of-the-road insights to really build into something big, but the large, talented cast is clearly thriving in the freewheeling style.

Rating: R, for nudity, language

Showing: Northwest Film Forum

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.