Ezra (2024)

By: Mike Ward on Saturday, June 01

R Running Time: 100 mins

SHOULD I SEE IT?

YES

  • A character-driven, personal family drama that is earnest and well-intentioned.

  • Powered by really great performances from the main cast, including William A. Fitzgerald is his debut role as Ezra, the autistic son at the center of the film.

  • As a family drama about people trying to figure out life’s complexities day-by-day and situation-by-situation, Ezra works well…

NO

  • As a road-trip movie where Max takes Ezra along for nebulous reasons, Ezra feels inauthentic and contrived.

  • Though deeply personal to writer and director, Ezra struggles from a storytelling standpoint to find space for everything it is exploring.

  • Hard to not wish this movie believed in itself more and didn’t rely on narrative cliches we have seen time and time again.


OUR REVIEW

Earnest, well-intentioned, and occasionally disappointing, Ezra tells the story of a divorced couple attempting to co-parent their autistic 10-year-old son. Max (Bobby Cannavale) is a stand-up comic, and former comedy writer, who uses open mics and local comedy gigs to try and land his next big break. Ex-wife Jenna (Rose Byrne) has a new man in her life (Tony Goldwyn, who also directs the film) and is far more connected to Ezra’s day-to- day needs than Max.

This family dynamic sets the tone for a drama that is a personal one for screenwriter Tony Spiridakis, as it mirrors some of the moments he experienced as a father of an autistic child. Spiridakis’ son is Goldwyn’s godson and that friendship the two men share helps the director understand the personal connection to the story. Oftentimes, and especially in the opening 30 minutes or so, the film feels intimate and personal. At other times, as when Max brings Ezra to the comedy clubs he performs at, we get two extremes. We either view Max from the crowd or the camera sits almost directly on his left shoulder, signifying an inner turmoil with Max’s struggle to connect.

Cannavale finds a boiling temper within Max, heightened by a complicated relationship with his father Stan (Robert De Niro) and his fiery disagreement with Ezra’s school and their decision to transfer his son to a special needs school. Jenna understands that Ezra’s school is ill-equipped to provide the services he needs and is open to the idea. Max wrestles with the worry that his son will never be accepted for who he is. Both things can be true and there is a sensitivity to all of this which is handled nicely by Goldwyn and Spiridakis.

We also have a subplot where Max needs to deliver big on stage to impress visiting bookers for the Jimmy Kimmel Show. Max sees this as his opportunity to potentially turn his life and career around, as does the club’s owner, played by Whoopi Goldberg. The events around his performance set in motion the crux of the film’s story - Max stealing Ezra in the middle of the night, taking his father’s car, and essentially running away without any real idea on what comes next. 

How you perceive that storyline is largely how you accept or dismiss Ezra as a movie. Max makes a number of poor decisions, well-intended or not, and while Cannavale and Fitzgerald really are wonderful together on screen, the movie becomes frustrating. Max’s decision-making drowns out the connections we have established between father and son. Fitzgerald’s authentic and moving performance withstands these moments, but also finds his character grappling with situations that feel inauthentic and often contrived.

What carries Ezra across the finish line are the performances, especially a compelling De Niro, whose character has a more intriguing back story to explore than Spiridakis’ screenplay allows. In an exploration of vulnerability and fear, Ezra shines bright. As a story of Max running away with his son, and even popping in on a couple old friends while keeping Ezra away from what he needs back home, the film feels less than.

CAST & CREW

Starring: Bobby Cannavale, Rose Byrne, William A. Fitzgerald, Robert De Niro, Tony Goldwyn, Whoopi Goldberg, Rainn Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Geoffrey Owens, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Matilda Lawler

Director: Tony Goldwyn
Written by: Tony Spiridakis
Release Date: May 31, 2024
Bleecker Street Media