The panorama
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Ezra
breaks negative stereotypes of autism by authentically portraying the neurodivergent character of the title. - Bobby Cannavale shines with the best performance of his career as a comedian who is fiercely protective of his son.
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Ezra
offers a charming and passionate insight into raising a child on the autism spectrum, standing out amid inaccurate portrayals.
This review was originally part of our coverage of the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.
It’s strange when Autism has been accurately portrayed on screen.It’s a delicate subject to broach, and while it may not be as stigmatized as it was just ten years ago, films like The predator, Extremely loud and incredibly closeand Music they have characters that are built entirely around negative stereotypes. Very often these characters are uniformly portrayed as robotic, emotionless and even unpleasant or unpleasant, while in real life people on the spectrum behave differently from each other.
While presenting his latest work as a director Ezra, Tony Goldwyn He made it clear to the TIFF audience that this is a personal story for him. Goldwyn’s lifelong friend Tony Spiridakis He wrote the screenplay for the film, inspired by his own experience co-parenting a child with autism. Some may view some of the content on Ezra as done in bad taste, including Robert de NiroThe character laments that he can no longer use the R-word, and those who are offended have a right to feel that way. However, that will not prevent Ezra from talking to many parents who are raising children who are on the spectrum.
What is ‘Ezra’ about?
At the beginning of the film we are introduced to Max Brandel (Bobby Cannavale), a former late-night comedy writer turned comediannorth. Due to his temper, he recently divorced Jenna (Rosa Byrne) and has moved back in with his father Stan (De Niro). While Max is desperate to get Jenna back, the only thing keeping him in touch with her is his autistic 11-year-old son, Ezra.William Fitzgerald), who is incredibly intelligent, but his actions at his public school have led him to put himself and others in danger. Max and Jenna constantly disagree about how to raise Ezra. Jenna wants to send him to a special school and prescribe him medication, while Max is tired of giving his son any prescription medication.
After an altercation at a doctor’s office, A restraining order is imposed against Max, preventing him from approaching his only son.After a career opportunity that could put his life back on track, Max does the only logical thing and kidnaps Ezra and takes him on a cross-country road trip from New York to Los Angeles.
‘Ezra’ has his heart in the right place
Unlike many big screen depictions of ASD, William Fitzgerald, a neurodivergent actor, plays the film’s main character. In his first starring role, Fitzgerald steals your heart with his performance. He feels authentic and his chemistry with his bigger co-stars like Cannavale, Byrne and De Niro feels genuine and raw. Ezra It could have easily seemed like a made-for-TV movie, but Goldwyn and Spiridakis never sugarcoat anything. There are a handful of scenes that may be difficult for some audience members, but it’s nothing offensive or done in bad taste. While other recent media portrayals of autism feel like they lack the awareness and attention that these types of stories require, Ezra It is told with the best of intentions. Some of the movie seems a little silly, there are quite a few jokes that don’t land and, yes, there is a point in the third act where the movie becomes the strangest commercial for Jimmy Kimmel live ever put on screen, but Ezra It’s just a hard movie to hate. As emotionally manipulative as some of the film’s most dramatic moments are, including a scene in which Ezra finally plays with kids his own age, it still manages to pack a punch.
Goldwyn’s film never turns out to be fake as there is a clear amount of love and affection that went into telling this story the right way. The film suffers from a stop-and-go pace, as it features several subplots surrounding some of its supporting actors. So welcome to an addition like Vera Farmiga In any movie or show, your story never adds anything to the rest of the movie narratively.
Cannavale may not necessarily be a household name, especially compared to some of his co-stars on film, but he consistently appears in a wide range of different projects, from blockbusters like the Ant Man movies and Jumanji: Welcome to the jungle as well as in more dramatic roles such as the Irish and Boardwalk Empire. Ezra gives Cannavale what is possibly his strongest work to date playing the role of a comedian who struggles to control his anger and is fiercely protective of his son. While he is able to utilize some of his comedic talents in the film, it is the more dramatic moments where his performance shines the most. He’s not afraid to show his character’s flaws, especially as Max continues to make horrible decisions throughout the film, but the audience is still able to find a way to care about him and root for him in the end.
Byrne and De Niro also do solid supporting work, but their performance is most effective when they appear on screen together. The back and forth between the political incorrectness of De Niro’s Max and the concerned nature of Byrne’s Jenna creates some of the film’s most entertaining and fun moments. The titular character Ezra It is not written with stereotypes and neither is the cast of characters that surround it. While the actors like Whoopi Goldberg and Rainn Wilson They appear for a bit in the film, never given much to do compared to the others.
Ezra It’s irresistibly charming.filled with so much passion and care, and finds strength where similar films fail. It’s not that autism is a rare disease, it’s incredibly common and increasingly accepted in modern society, but Ezra It feels like one of the first movies in a long time to give a solid understanding of what it’s like to raise a child on the spectrum.
REVIEW
Ezra (2023)
Ezra is an authentic and sensitive film with the best performance of Bobby Cannavale’s career.
- When it comes to movies about autism, this is one of the few that does the topic justice.
- The film hits the right spot, capturing the joys and challenges of life.
- Cannavale is the best he’s ever been, capturing the flaws in his character just as he does his heart.
- The film suffers from pacing issues and subplots that go nowhere.
Ezra is now available to stream on VOD in the US.