Jay Kelly

"All my memories are movies...."

A dramatic and funny showcase that feels authentic from its first frame to its superb final minutes, JAY KELLY emerges as one of my favorite films of the year.

Every moment of this carefully crafted character study avoids cliches, revealing the life of a very famous movie star and those that surround him.

George Clooney has never been better than he is here as aging action MOVIE star Jay Kelly. Kelly has everything that a long career in Hollywood can bring. His European home is stunning, his travel by Range Rover fleet or private jet is world class.

Kelly is surrounded by a constant group of support staff, led by his agent of many years, Ron Sukenick, played to perfection by a great Adam Sandler. For any of you out there that haven't caught on to the fact that Sandler is one of our best American dramatic actors, here's more celluloid proof that should win him some acting awards this season.

Ron is at Jay's beck and call, 24/7/365. He's committed to Jay and cares about him like family. Some of his other staff, might not be quite so loyal, or the gig is starting to wear thin.

Laura Dern (Jurassic Park, Blue Velvet) is hilarious as Liz, whose been at Jay's side as long as Ron, but has a keener eye on the reciprocal nature of his loyalty.

Candy (Emily Mortimer) seems to be anxious to move on to a new gig as well.

Jay's life as a movie star leaves him little time for family, a fact that hits him squarely in the face as his youngest daughter gets ready to head off to college with her friends after a last summer fling across Paris and Italy.

Billy Crudup is excellent as Timothy, a friend from Jay's past who resurfaces and fires up the first moment of Jay's self realization about the years behind him.

We've all seen films about very successful people who come to a turning point in their lives. We've certainly seen behind-the-scenes tales of famous movie stars and the glamorous life that they lead. The challenge of those films is to feel sorry for the person who has everything when they have a moment of self realization about their priorities.

But that's what is so different, so emotionally resonant in JAY KELLY.

Director/Writer Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story) finds the perfect actors in Clooney and Sandler to become Jay and Ron. Both are at a turning point in their lives, approaching or crossing sixty years old. It's a time when you face your mortality for the first time and question the choices you've made.

What happens in the film is as spontaneous and unpredictable as Jay's sudden whims to break his routine. I had no idea where it was going but I loved every single minute of the journey.

Jay's relationship with his oldest daughter Jessica (a terrific Riley Keough) and father (Stacy Keach) become major plot points in the final half of the film, as Jay heads to accept a lifetime film achievement award and invites his family.

I made assumptions about where the film was going, but didn't credit Baumbach with enough originality. His storytelling and reveals pack an emotional punch that surprised me, especially with Jay and Ron.

The film is packed with stars, some in small but pivotal roles. I'm not going to mention them all here, so you can be surprised as well, but look for the always great Jim Broadbent as a mentor of Jay's and Greta Gerwig as Ron's long suffering wife. The scenes with her and the kids are all hilariously believable.

If someone asks me what me favorite film ending is of all-time, I always lean quickly to Warren Beatty and Julie Christie at the end of "Heaven Can Wait". Now, I'll hesitate and think about the final minutes of JAY KELLY, a brilliant, heart pulling line of dialogue that speaks to all of us, especially those of us in the same stage of life as Jay.

This is intelligent, funny and moving film work of the highest order. I need to watch a lot more Baumbach, because it's hard to believe this isn't his masterpiece.

JAY KELLY gets an A+. Clooney and Sandler deserve every accolade that's about to come their way.