31/365 Neo Ned

Starring:  Gabrielle Union,  Jeremy Renner

Genre: Romantic Drama

Discovery: Watching all movies Jeremy Renner, one by one.

Summary:  Young man, Ned, who idolizes his dad & joins a white supremacy gang gets himself put in a mental hospital where he meets Rachel, a black woman who believes she is Hitler.

First Glance:  These two actors give it all they have got.  I can’t believe I went into this film leery of the journey it would take me on.  Would it be too race-based? Would it be believable? Would it smack of desperation to lead me on a certain path?  None of those things happened.  Instead, I was treated to the story of a lost soul of a man trying to find love where he can & it happens in the least likely of places.

Deeper Look:  It takes a very nuanced director to create such a provocative film and not have it be heavy-handed or degrading.  Gabrielle & Jeremy have chemistry in spades.  It isn’t just the romantic kind either.  I felt as though I was watching two peeps foil off of each other in a very special way.  For all of Ned’s posturing that happens in the beginning of the movie, you can see that he is clearly a guy in need and wanting to give ‘great love’.  No stereotypes here.  Real, honest emotion in this almost coming-of-age story except Ned is not a teen. (Since I try to be spoiler free: the scene near the end will show you just how fine an actor Jeremy really is.) Don’t expect a story with a fabricated hollywood ending.

What I Took Away from this Movie: This is one of the hardest ones to share what I took away.  It would have to be:  You love who you love.  Change is always possible.

Final Glimpse:  Beautiful.  Left me aching at the end.  Now that is a powerful film.