Juliet, Naked

Juliet, Naked is an odd little film. Based on the Nick Hornby novel of the same name, it was marketed as a romantic comedy. However, it isn’t, at least not in the traditional sense. It is certainly less romantically inclined than Fever Pitch, another Hornsby adaptation, nor is it as funny as High Fidelity, also a Hornsby book. It does share the trope of many of his works of a man with a singular, almost all consuming, passion, a la the main character’s devotion to Arsenal Football Club or the Red Socks in Fever Pitch’s British and American versions, respectively. Juliette, Naked deals with a musical obsession similar to High Fidelity, but here the general passion of the latters record owner is replaced with a passion for a singular, niche, one-hit-wonder of sorts, collecting memorabilia and listening to the same album, its demos, and the live show bootlegs it spawned, endlessly on repeat.

The twist here is that, unlike other Hornby stories where the obsessive character is the lead and their obsession is a character flaw that adds richness to their personality as they grapple with how much and in what ways to temper the all-consuming nature of that passion, Juliet, Naked places that character in the position of supporting role, whose foibles around their obsession are uncharacteristically not tolerated by the narrative. Instead, we focus mostly on two other leads, that character’s listless and unhappy girlfriend and the middle aged and pathetic former indie artist that is the subject of the obsession. This, too, is unique among Hornby adaptations, as the protagonist is a woman.

For someone that has, in all my interactions with his work, focused entirely on the quirky male as the subject of his writings, to the point you begin to suspect it is at least slightly autobiographical, Hornby and the team that adapted his book did a remarkably good job of flipping the script on his typical story and pointing the spotlight at the other players: the woman in the quirky man’s life and the subject of the quirky passion. However, the story does not strictly revolve around their relationship with the quirky man, per se. Instead, it is merely a device to both bring them in contact with each other and to create just one of a myriad of complexities and conflicts that drive the story.

What the movie is most interested in is an exploration of how one copes with the feeling of having wasted one’s life, or at least many years of it. Ethan Hawke’s Tucker Crowe is the aging one time rocker who has failed in a few ways. Far before the events of the film, a personal event causes him to lose the sense of authenticity he feels necessary to make music, causing him to abandoned his status as a rising star of the music world, and a subsequent wastrel lifestyle of many romantic dalliances have left him as a repeatedly failed husband and father, with many kids he never sees and ex-wives that hate him. Rose Byrne’s Annie is a thirty something girlfriend who has dedicated what she feels are the prime years of her life to a dead-end relationship. Although there are some romantic sparks that fly between the two, the story is more interested in their kinship as lost souls, each providing context, experience, and guidance to the other in their respective journeys; discovering just how unhappy with their lives they are and then figuring out what to do about it.

I found this aspect of the film quite appealing in its message of quiet hopefulness. The movie rarely, if ever, offers grand theatrics or Hollywood flash. Instead, it reminds you that your life is yours to live and it is never too late to try to change course if you aren’t happy through the small and grounded ways that the main characters adjust their attitudes and behaviors to build themselves up anew.

The result is something that I wouldn’t consider my favorite Hornby adaptation, but one that still touched me on a personal level. As someone who has struggled at times with the feeling that my life was not heading in the direction I wanted, or that years of my life were wasted pursuing goals that never panned out, the film really resonated with me. If you have ever been in a similar position, maybe it will resonate with you as well. If not, you may be taken in by its charming narrative and dashes of wit, but you likely find it neither as polished, funny, quirky, or romantic as Hornby’s other, more famous adaptations.

Would Recommend: If you have ever felt that you have wasted years of your life and are looking for a film to let you know that you are seen, your feelings are valid, and its not to late to make a change.

Would Not Recommend: If you are expecting a typical boy meets girl, they have some problems, then they get together at the end structure.