'SHOPGIRL' DOESN'T REALLY SELL ITSELF.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic WHEN SHE HAS her first dinner with wealthy suitor SUITOR. One who is a party to a suit or action in court. One who is a party to an action. In its ancient sense, suitor meant one Who was bound to attend the county court, also, one who formed part of the secta. (q.v.) Ray Porter (Steve Martin Noun 1. Steve Martin - United States actor and comedian (born in 1945) Martin ), Claire Danes' Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. salesgirl asks every question but the one foremost in her mind: ``Why me?'' You could make a case that it's a question that the movie, ``Shopgirl,'' never answers or, if it does, that the response is fundamentally uninteresting. That said, ``Shopgirl,'' adapted by Steve Martin from his own wry novella novella: see novel. novella Story with a compact and pointed plot, often realistic and satiric in tone. Originating in Italy during the Middle Ages, it was often based on local events; individual tales often were gathered into collections. of the same name, manages to capture the emotional truth of a relationship between two self-contained people who aren't particularly interesting, either on their own or together. When Danes' Mirabelle asks Ray after their first date, ``Was I boring,'' he politely answers, ``No,'' and then asks, ``Was I?'' She answers: ``A little bit.'' It's as if Martin is acknowledging that we're a long way from the rapid-fire banter of ``His Girl Friday'' here. Anyone who has watched Martin recently won't come expecting any wild-and-crazy guy antics. He didn't direct ``Shopgirl,'' but the self-conscious, studied imagery created by Anand Tucker (``Hilary and Jackie'') is consistent with the wistful melancholy that pervades Martin's latter-day work. The movie's central question is whether wan, passive Mirabelle, a lapsed artist, deserves something more than to be showered with gifts by a rich man who keeps himself emotionally distant. It's not as if Ray isn't upfront with Mirabelle, telling her after they first have sex that he isn't looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. a committed relationship A committed relationship is an interpersonal relationship based upon a mutually agreed upon commitment to one another involving exclusivity, honesty, or some other agreed upon behavior. . Still, it isn't hard for a simple Vermont girl to be swept away by fitted dresses, private jet planes and high-thread-count linens. Loneliness in Los Angeles seems mandated here, with the usual images of locals, hermetically her·met·ic also her·met·i·cal adj. 1. Completely sealed, especially against the escape or entry of air. 2. Impervious to outside interference or influence: sealed in their automobiles, whizzing (or not) through the city's freeway system, a sterile world largely devoid of human contact. Mirabelle and Ray fit right in. Fighting the flow of traffic is Jeremy (Jason Schwartzman), an immature striver who sees in Claire a reason to grow up - or at least achieve the means to pay for a date at Universal Studios' CityWalk. Schwartzman gives the movie a shot of life every time he appears on screen, continuing a run of great comic performances that began with ``Rushmore'' and includes ``I (Heart) Huckabees.'' That contrasts with Ray and Claire, empty vessels waiting for someone to fill them. Glenn Whipp, (818) 713-3672 glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com SHOPGIRL - Two and one half stars (R: some sexual content, nudity, brief language) Starring: Steve Martin, Claire Danes, Jason Schwartzman. Director: Anand Tucker. Running time: 1 hr. 45 min. Playing: ArcLight in Hollywood; Laemmle Monica in Santa Monica. In a nutshell: Wan romance in L.A. enlivened en·liv·en tr.v. en·liv·ened, en·liv·en·ing, en·liv·ens To make lively or spirited; animate. en·liv  en·er n. by Jason Schwartzman's clueless clue·less adj. Lacking understanding or knowledge. clueless Adjective Slang helpless or stupid Adj. 1. striver. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Steve Martin and Claire Danes begin an uneasy relationship in which gifts are given but commitment is withheld in the Los Angeles-set ``Shopgirl.'' |
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