Anyone who had trouble putting up with Ben Stiller’s abrasive title character in “Greenberg” might pause before entering the world of one Philip Lewis Friedman. A bearded New York novelist whose second book is about to be published, Philip is self-centered, vindictive, and — worst of all — articulate.
He’s played by Jason Schwartzman, an actor unafraid of letting his least appealing qualities hang out. Schwartzman understands how to throw himself into this kind of egotist; we can enjoy the actor’s skill even as we’re being repelled by the character.
In “Listen Up Philip,” this guy is meant to be a throwback to a certain kind of ’70s antihero (the movie’s got the grainy look of the era), as well as the kind of literary character that might have sprung from the pages of Philip Roth. Having said that, he’s still a jerk.
Writer-director Alex Ross Perry (“The Color Wheel”) hedges his bets, letting Philip slide off screen for most of the middle section of the film. There we concentrate on Philip’s live-in girlfriend Ashley, who’s probably been paying the rent with the money from her photography business.
She is played by Elisabeth Moss, the increasingly essential actress from “Mad Men” and “The One I Love,” and her character is so much warmer than Philip it’s a relief to watch her, even in the mundane business of getting a new cat.
Philip’s been taken under the wing of a famous writer (Jonathan Pryce) who brings his protégé to his upstate cabin and gets him a teaching job in the vicinity. Philip encounters other women — the well-cast group includes Krysten Ritter, Joséphine de La Baume, and Dree Hemingway — but his erotic inclinations are frequently blocked by his sour disposition and his need to prove women wrong.
The way Perry spreads his attention across these characters is shrewd, because we probably couldn’t stay in Philip’s unpleasant cauldron for 108 minutes. Still, it’s not always easy to tell how much Perry is in control of “Listen Up Philip” — the way he keeps his actors in close-up suggests he’s searching for the key to each scene.
A narrator, Eric Bogosian, gives the whole things a fittingly literary feel. It might not add up to a complete package, but at least the movie delivers some smarts, as well as one very brave performance.
“Listen Up Philip” (3 stars)
An abrasive novelist (Jason Schwartzman) makes life miserable for the people around him — fortunately, we spend as much time with them as we do with him. Still, director Alex Ross Perry doesn’t get the balance entirely right, even if the cast is excellent. With Elisabeth Moss, Jonathan Pryce.
Rating: Not rated; probably R for language
Showing: Sundance Cinemas
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