7 Chinese Brothers
10 August 2015 | 1:35 pm
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Matthew Tomich
"Despite his lack of direction, Schwartzman is effortlessly likeable."
Is Jason Schwarztman perfectly cast in every movie in which he stars? Or does he sink into the same groove no matter the character?
In 7 Chinese Brothers, Schwartzman slides naturally into the role of Larry, a zero-ambition life drop-out and alcoholic-in-the-making with a penchant for drinking on the job. The only relationships he maintains are ones of necessity - with his rich grandmother (Olympia Dukakis), from whom he sheepishly begs for money; with Major (Tunde Adebimpe), an employee at his grandmother's aged care facility who sells him pills; and with his lethargic French bulldog, Arrow - Schwartzman's actual dog.
Despite his lack of direction, Schwartzman is effortlessly likeable. There's an effervescent charm to the loser characters he portrays, even if most of them are largely the same, and Larry is no different. For much of the film, Larry seems to be talking to himself, either because the people around him aren't listening or because he's asking rhetorical questions to his dog on meaningless car rides. As a result, much of the dialogue feels improvised. Like Larry's life, the plot in 7 Chinese Brothers has no momentum, yet the performance and the foils he surrounds himself with make for an enjoyable albeit stagnant meditation on nothingness.
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