The Air I Breathe

Many independent writers and directors are moving away from films that can be defined by a single genre. Now, more than ever, films try too hard to fill the requirements of several movie types. The expression ‘jack of all trades, master on none’ comes to mind. It has to be difficult enough to do one genre well but when the hyphens start to pile up the results are usually less than the original expectation. This is ultimately the problem with the film ‘The Air I Breathe’ by newcomer Jieho Lee. The film isn’t bad at all but it reaches beyond its grasp and falls short of its potential. What the film does have going for it is an interesting premise and an amazing cast. This is in many ways an experimental film trying to break the typical Hollywood mold. Even with its flaws a lot of credit has to be given for the whole hearted try. The film attempts to combine elements of the thriller, crime story, drama and romance. All of these are highly specialized forms of cinema and making them blend properly is like preparing a five star meal. The result here is well thought out but some of the flavors clash a bit too much. Ultimately this is what independent films are supposed to do, strike out in new directions even if they don’t fully work out.

Like many new directors and writers Jieho Lee has some credits to his name for music videos. This may be a great way to get noticed but it really doesn’t fully prepare the artist for the rigors of a feature film. Lee’s direction here is fragmented. It may be only natural considering the short length of videos. The challenge comes in with trying to tie everything together. Lee also employs many of the directorial tricks of the trade more common to music videos. There are quick paced and frequent cuts. The lights assault the eyes and the music in unrelenting. Instead of trying to give an overall narrative to the movie the premise demands four different points of view that Lee has to merge together with his direction. This type of film has to become a tapestry where each thread adds to the entire film. Many have gone before with this technique and have been more successful but again Lee makes a valiant effort.

This is also Lee’s first time writing a film. His co-writer, Bob DeRosa, has a couple of scripts for shorts to his name but both are novices in the world of feature length films. The film is based on an old Chinese proverb that breaks down human beings into four emotions; happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love. Each emotion is given its own segment and an actor to represent that feeling. Over the course of the film each of the separate stories are on a collision course heading towards the ending. The problem comes in that insufficient time is given to each of the four principle characters to develop them properly. This is compounded by the fact that each of those characters has to represent only one dominate emotion instead of giving a balance with other feelings. None of l the leads play characters with proper names; each is known to the audience only by the emotion that is displayed on the title card for their respective segment. One segment goes into the supernatural which doesn’t truly fit with the rest of film. It takes the audience out of the realm of reality which otherwise would have been among its greatest strengths. In some ways it is a necessary plot device but there had to be some other way of getting the story moving for that segment. The idea of taking humanity down to the four most fundamental emotions is a great one. If Mr. Lee had a bit more experience under his belt he could have created a film with tighter writing and more concise direction. Thankfully his cast is top notch and does the most to save the production. This film would be a difficult project for a seasoned writer and director. Doing it as a freshman work took a lot of intestinal fortitude; if this is how Mr. Lee starts out in feature films I can’t wait to view his follow up work.

Forest Whitaker plays a meek and mild stock broker who always found it best to play by the rules and not make waves. One fateful day he overhears a group of co-workers talking about an up coming horse race. According to what they are talking about the race is fixed and there is a lot of money to be had. The broker decides that he deserves more out of life. He would be happy with just one big score and this seems like the perfect time. Throwing caution to the wind he goes and makes a $50,000 bet with a shady bookie. Unexpectedly the horse has problems in the race and loses. The broker has no possible way to pay off his debt. It turns out that the debt is to a criminal that the bookie works for, Fingers (Andy Garcia). His nickname is derived from the nasty habit he has in collecting the interest on money owned to him, he takes off a finger. Another criminal played by Brendan Fraser comes to collect the debt. He is a regular client of the broker and instead a taking a finger from the broker he hands him something and tells him he will need it soon, a gun.

The gangster is Pleasure in this vignette. He was so certain that the broker would need the gun is he can see the future. This ability has not served him well in the past. Know the future does not mean he can always change it. In his childhood he was unable to save the life of his best friend. His ability to see into the future did come in handy when investing with the broker, however. Pleasure is charged with taking care of the boss’s nephew, Tony (Emile Hirsch). The kid is a holdover from the fifties always tending to his hair and trying to look cool. Pleasure takes him on his collection rounds with him. It turns out that Fingers has just acquired the contract of an up coming pop star known as Trista (Sarah Michelle Gellar) who for the sake of the next segment is Sorrow.

Sorrow has had a traumatic life. As a young girl she witnessed a car striking and killing her father. Now her career is taking off but her manager, Frank (Todd Stashwick) has embezzled most of her money and sold her contract to Fingers to pay off his gambling debts. Fingers wants to send her out on a grueling singing tour that offers no rest just profits for Fingers. She is suicidal and Fingers assigns Pleasure to keep an eye on her. Pleasure is upset when he discovers that her future cannot be seen by him.

Love here is embodied by a doctor played by Kevin Bacon. The one love of his life is Gina (Julie Delpy) but she is in love with his friend Henry (Clark Gregg). Gina is working with venomous snakes hoping to find a cure for hemophilia. One day she is bitten and inadvertently given the wrong anti-venom. Now only a blood transfusion can save her life. The problem is she has a rare blood type. The only one around with it is Sorrow.

The DVD of this film is released by Image. Thy have such an eclectic catalog of films that it is amazing. Some are great others fall flat. This film is incredible for a first film and has a lot going for it. The cast is something else. Once again Whitaker is able to do a lot with a thinly written character. The same goes for Gellar who has moved far away from her comic book Buffy character. It is great that she is taking on off beat roles like this to hone her craft. This is worth while just because it tries so hard to work.

Posted 03/19/08