The Extra Man

The Extra Man

108 Minutes

Paul Dano seems to be in direct competition with Michael Cera and Jesse Eisenberg for most milquetoast indie leading man these days. Each of this trinity of pale, awkward young men seem to be appearing in a slew of quirkfests this year, from Youth in Revolt to Holy Rollers to Dano’s latest, The Extra Man. Loosely based on a novel by raconteur Jonathan Ames, Dano stretches his comedic legs a bit more than usual, but the film as a whole seems curiously unglued.

Dano stars as Louis Ives, a young English literature teacher enamored of both the writings and image of the 1920s. The film pushes that point so far as to open with a brief sepia period piece apropos of nothing and a discussion about The Great Gatsby’s narrator. However, it quickly shifts to Louis losing his Princeton position due to an unfortunate fascination with cross-dressing and moving to Manhattan with a half-baked idea towards writing. Responding to a lodging ad for a fellow “gentleman” (which also mentions ‘no calls before noon’), the callow young man moves into a ramshackle apartment with the curmudgeonly Henry Harrison (Kevin Kline). It becomes swiftly apparent that despite his strongly stated views that Princeton was a fine institution “before they started letting women in” and that his politics are far “right of the Pope,” Henry is in fact a male escort. Not a gigolo, mind you. He’s simply an “extra man,” that is, the man that’s there for an unfortunate (and elderly and wealthy) woman who finds herself without a companion for an evening.

And so, as they say, hijinks ensue. The Extra Man is fortunate to boast a distinguished cast, since its story never coalesces into something more concrete than a sketch of eccentricities. As it is, Kline manages to make something more of Henry than a collection of charming, politically incorrect bon mots; his character is the lynchpin and heart of the film, someone who can insult his companions and complain of his infestation of fleas without ever seeming anything less than gentlemanly. Similarly, Dano’s turn as a sexually confused, needy magazine marketer with delusions that a tie and clumsy bow make him a gentleman is spot on. Katie Holmes’ thankless role as a technical love interest is much less welcome, although she certainly does her best as a shallow environmentalist. Perhaps most appreciated and predictably, the most laugh-out-loud funny, is John C. Reilly as an enigmatic and ridiculously hirsute neighbor, mechanical genius and chronic masturbator known only as “Gershon.”

The Extra Man is a lightweight film, so it’s a fine choice that it rarely seems to aspire to be more. Co-directors Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini tend to a kind of Royal Tenenbaums quirk that shows its influence a little too strongly (a gravely narrator, a third act montage set to early Velvet Underground), but largely make the wise decision to let their cast shine and push themselves to the background. It may end up a minor work for all involved, but it’s not going to be a black mark on anyone’s resume. After all, you can’t really fault anything that has Kevin Kline rubbing his ankles with shoe polish to disguise his socks being full of holes.

by Nathan Kamal