Trailing Off: "The Meddler" (2016)

Scene from The Meddler

Welcome to the weekly column Trailing Off in which I take a look at a trailer from the past week and analyze its potential. This will be done using an obnoxious amount of analyzing and personal thoughts on the cast and crew as well as expectations. Coming every Sunday (it's called Trailing Off for a reason), I will attempt to highlight films ranging from new blockbusters to lesser known indies and give them their due. Partially to spread awareness, I do believe that there is an art to the sell and will do my best to highlight why these trailers matter or don't with approval (trove) or disapproval (trash). So please stop by, recommend some trailers, and I will see you next time.

Trailer in Discussion

Directed By: Lorene Scafaria

Written By: Lorene Scafaria

Starring: Megalyn Echikunwoke, Rose Byrne, J.K. Simmons

- Preamble -

I am sure that there are weeks where readers, if any, wonder if Trailing Off has finally bitten the dust. In all honesty, it's a column that hits a few rough patches, especially given occasional busy weekends and often the lack of quality content to choose from. I do try to make this a more frequent thing to compliment the Alternative to What column, but I do run into occasional issues, and I apologize. However, I did come across The Meddler, and let me just say that it is one of those films that definitely defines why I started this column in the first place.

So, why is that? I am a big fan of Lorene Scafaria. In fact, I'd argue that she is one of my favorite screenwriters currently going. Between her work on Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, she has an understanding for ensembles and personalities the likes of which aren't often seen. She can be humble and sweet while also capturing subculture behaviors that are far more captivating than one would initially think. It also helps that she can be really fun as well as occasionally bleak. Her directorial debut is full of funny moments as well as sad ones, creating a nice balance that I would hope continues to bless her throughout the rest of her career.

The fact is that she is also on my list of eagerly anticipating each and every movie she does (though I'll confess to not being too familiar with her acting roles). She is an exciting force, and one that I feel has potential to be one of the more intriguing voices in independent cinema as time progresses. She may get overshadowed in some ways by Diablo Cody, but I'd argue that Scafaria has a nice hold on her language and can produce some great work where necessary. I know very little about The Meddler, but knowing that it's her second directorial film makes me all the more excited to see where she goes with her stories.

As mentioned, I know very little about this film, though it looks to have more of a central focus on women, and that is Scafaria's strong suit. I don't know if it's going to be another ensemble, or more of a focus on a few central characters. Either way, I'm curious to know if this is more of a comedy or a drama -  or both. In all honesty, it's been awhile since I've been genuinely excited for a trailer like this (and no, I wasn't going to do Ghostbusters this week). Fingers crossed that it turns out okay.

- Dissection -

From the looks of it, it's going to be a small movie about a mother and daughter trying to get along. It also looks to be a comedy about the generation gap issues. Considering that there's been a string of similar films in the past few months - Ricki and the Flash, Hello My Name is Doris - I am not surprised to see a demographic (as the trailer suggests, "mothers") finally getting quality entertainment. Yes, the music choices are quaint and the awkward moments look familiar. However, there's still a sense that the film is going to be a lot of fun.

I'm guessing that Susan Sarandon is the lead character here, and she manages to put on an accent and live her life in compelling ways. For starters, J.K. Simmons' offhand remark about the Harley is a great character moment that makes me hope for more of Scafaria's charm to be scattered throughout this film. I am very curious to see how much of the mother-daughter stuff will be explored, as I feel like this trailer does an effective job of covering a lot of ground. It also helps that there's a lot of funny moments.

As a whole, I am probably not the demographic for this film based on the trailer. It does seem to be going for the sweet side of things. However, I cannot deny that there's something to the personalities found in Sarandon and Rose Byrne's brief chemistry. Considering that I also like Scafaria as a writer, she already has a few good lines here that make me more excited. If nothing else, this reassures my interest in wanting to see The Meddler, and that may be enough to win this week's Trailing Off.

- One Sentence Sell -

Susan Sarandon and Rose Byrne star in a mother-daughter comedy full of awkward moments and plenty of fun generation gap humor.

- Trove or Trash -

TROVE

I already explained how I was excited for this movie. Thankfully, the trailer maintains my interest and possibly raises it thanks to some reassuring quality jokes.