Everything Must Go (Review)

As much as I like to whine, one of the things I love about the film world these days is that some of the biggest stars in Hollywood have chosen to go out of their way and make their share of ambitious indie films. One of these stars is Will Ferrell. While he is well-known for his (frequently good) cartoonish work in films such as Anchorman and The Other Guys, he has been able to make time for a few movies such as Stranger Than Fiction and Winter Passing (neither of which I’ve seen). His latest foray into indie territory is Everything Must Go; an admirable effort that is never quite as gripping as it needs to be. The performances are solid-to-terrific all around, but the film’s writer/director Dan Rush doesn’t give the proceedings nearly enough edge. It all goes down far too easy.

Ferrell plays Nick Halsey, an alcoholic who is fired from his job in the wake of a business trip controversy. When he goes back home, he finds that his wife has moved out, changed the locks to the house, and thrown all of Nick’s possessions on the front lawn. Instead of relocating, Nick decides to sleep outside in the loving embrace of his comfortable armchair. In the process, he begins to interact with his neighbors that he would otherwise ignore. After a while, he turns his outdoor living room into a yard sale.

Everything Must Go is low-key to a fault. When moments should have a sweeping emotional impact, they are unable to create much of anything. It’s not that the story itself is uninteresting; the way that it’s handled is far too run-of-the-mill. There is not a second of suspense to be found here. I realize this isn’t meant to be a thriller, but it’s all played in a way so that every development can be predicted at least a few minutes ahead of time. From the beginning, the film is obviously coasting in for the easiest possible landing.

It’s all the more disappointing because each of the actors delivers a really solid performance. Ferrell is, in fact, quite good when he’s not running around screaming like a maniac. His role here is still rather comedic, but the humor is much more subdued and not nearly as broad. Whether he’s fully clothed or in his underwear, Ferrell can squeeze humor out of even the slightest of material.

While Ferrell is great, the performance that leaves the most impact is that of Rebecca Hall, who is known by most for her work in Ben Affleck’s The Town. Hall’s character here is clearly in a state of confusion, but almost none of it appears on the surface. A lesser actress would have read the script and gone with something a little bit peppier, but Hall creates something much more powerful. Also impressive is the young Christopher Jordan Wallace—son of the late hip hop artist The Notorious B.I.G.—who plays a neighborhood boy with familial troubles of his own. All of these characters are your typical suburban types who are hiding pain beneath an “everything’s fine” exterior, but the actors pull it off rather well.

What hurts the film is Dan Rush. While he writes a potentially compelling script, he takes no chances when translating the material to the screen. The film is based on a short story by Raymond Carver, but I doubt it was nearly as humdrum as this. This is material that could have become something rather powerful, but Rush plays it so down the middle that the film evaporates into thin air even while it’s still rolling. Bland indie drama/comedies like this are a dime a dozen. The only thing that separates Everything Must Go from the pack is that it has Will Ferrell. It helps, but it isn’t good enough.

GRADE: C+