In a World…

Sister Code!

Add Lake Bell’s name to your film vocab list.  If you’re looking at films as art, her name holds more weight than any Cameron or Bay.  In a World…, Bell’s feature-length debut, provides a feminist reading of the movie voiceover industry, and subverts certain expectations by shooting a female-centric romantic comedy as though it’s a drama (look at the shots!).

The story’s protagonist, Carol Solomon (Bell herself), is the daughter of voiceover king Sam Soto (Fred Melamed), who has published an autobiography and is about to receive a lifetime achievement award in the wake of Don LaFontaine’s passing.  He’s also dating a much younger woman (Alexandra Holden) around Carol’s age, and is fairly overt concerning his opinions about women maintaining their roles and not trying to do what men do (despite having two daughters).  Excited about living with a woman half his age, he kicks Carol out.  Carol, whose work as an independent voice coach barely provides her with two nickels to clink together, moves in with her sister, Dani (Michaela Watkins) and her husband, Moe (Rob Corddry).  The two have been together for a long time, and Dani’s long work hours as a concierge have prevented any real intimacy (chances are, the arrival of Carol isn’t going to help).  Carol, however, does her best to mediate: Moe asks her for advice (or rather, freaks out at her) after innocently allowing his young female neighbor to use his and Dani’s shower while the latter is at work.  Dani inevitably calls to say she’s coming home early, and Moe nervously jabbers that he will cook them a “sandwich bar” for dinner.  It’s a great gag, and the banter between these three characters is such a pleasure that I would probably (read: definitely) watch a sitcom starring them.

Through one thing and another, Carol is called by coworker Louis (Demetri Martin in a tolerable performance) to coach Eva Longoria, because her Irish accent sounds, in his words, “like a retarded pirate.”    Carol also provides a temp track for a new movie trailer when Sam Soto’s heir apparent, Gustav Warner (Ken Marino) is sidelined by laryngitis.  The new film (a meta-movie that spoofs The Hunger Games and just about everything The Hunger Games itself rips off) brings back Don LaFontaine’s famous introductory clause, “In a world…”.  Unexpectedly (to Carol, not us) , the film’s executive producer wants Carol for the job.  Carol, of course, does not tell her father, who is so wrapped up in himself and his voiceover legacy that he assures Gustav he will put this unknown woman in her place for trying to take the job.  Simultaneously, Carol asks Dani to record the voice of an Irish client at the hotel for research (Carol has been banned from the hotel for recording people).  When the Irish rogue comes between Dani and Moe, Carol feels obligated to help, even while she has her hands full with potential stardom.  At a family dinner, Carol gives the news to Sam, who shows absolutely no support for her.

In a World… is not racked with surprises and twists.  Who wins the voiceover role is not as important as why.  Films about the film industry do not work when they’re too self-conscious or inside-jokey (see Argo), but that’s just it: this story is not about films or big breaks; it’s about characters.  Carol, not the stuff that surrounds her, is important.  Dani’s relationship with Moe is important – these are things that people are concerned with, things that in real life (and in good films) feel urgent.

Fred Melamed, who appeared as Larry David’s therapist in Curb Your Enthusiasm (another character whose obnoxiousness was begotten by his obliviousness), plays Sam Soto in a way that could convince anyone that this character is based on an actual person (he isn’t).  The film’s great supporting ensemble comes in the form of Tig Notaro, Nick Offerman, and Carly Chaikin, all of whom have (and display) plenty of experience with comic timing.  There’s even a cameo by Cameron Diaz as herself playing the lead in The Amazon Games, and I daresay it’s one of her more satisfying recent roles.

There’s a lot of Goldbluming in this film, and I’ve never seen it done so well.  This is one of very few instances in which “improv” actually makes sense in dialogue meant to carry a story: Bell’s characters tend to stutter and stumble over the beginnings of their sentences, digging for the right words when they’re put on the spot.  Human beings do this.  Not a whole lot of film characters do.  But because of that, it feels wonderfully exclusive to this film and its titular “world.”  This is one of the best directing jobs I’ve seen this year.  Its blood is rollicking, but every bone is deliberately placed.  Bell has given us the “nose kiss,” the “sandwich bar,” and “sister code.”  Good comedy, actual improv (i.e. not Will Ferrell rattling off unfunny one-liners in totally unscripted scenes), unsettling commentary about women in male-dominated industries, and best of all, a unique character.  I’m not sure what’s better.

In a World… (2013); written and directed by Lake Bell; starring Lake Bell, Michaela Watkins, Fred Melamed, and Demetri Martin.