Todd Solondz's Happiness is only sixteen years old, but for the most part, it's been forgotten. Most people don't like to think about it because the Dylan Baker storyline is so upsetting, but really the incredible darkness of the humor overwhelms all of that. It's a look at the dark side of suburbia that David Lynch would be proud of, following the lives of a highl dysfunctional family. There are three sisters: the successful yet disdainful writer Helen (Lara Flynn Boyle), homemaker Trish (Cynthia Stevenson), and the rather lost and drifitng Joy (Jane Adams) all connected by both blood and a shared, but different misery. Trish's husband Bill (Dylan Baker) is a psychiatrist with a calm and collected demeanor, but it's all a facade. He's a pedophile who letches after his son's prepubescent friends and eventually escalates his lust to rape. And not to be forgotten, Philip Seymour Hoffman plays a Allen, a grown man who never evolved from the teenage geek he once was, closed off in a world of pornography and obscene phone calls.
Happiness is nothing if not an ensemble piece. Everyone involved delivers a great performance despite the uneasiness of what their characters are going through, which is essential for the film to work. The pedophile storyline is unquestionably one of the most disturbing things I've ever seen- not only because of the inherent disturbing nature of the subject matter, but because as an audience member, you're almost drawn in to sympathize with Bill. This all comes to a head in one scene where Bill places drugs in a young boy's sandwich, planning on sodomizing the boy as soon as he passes out. Baker plays Bill so well that we actually feel bad for him when the boy initially tells Bill he doesn't want the sandwich. This subplot may seem out of place in a comedy, but Solondz utilizes it well to create a lethally ironic and darkly funny film. It's not just controversial, it's sincere. Everyone in the movie is just trying to make a connection, on some sick pursuit of happiness...
Happiness is nothing if not an ensemble piece. Everyone involved delivers a great performance despite the uneasiness of what their characters are going through, which is essential for the film to work. The pedophile storyline is unquestionably one of the most disturbing things I've ever seen- not only because of the inherent disturbing nature of the subject matter, but because as an audience member, you're almost drawn in to sympathize with Bill. This all comes to a head in one scene where Bill places drugs in a young boy's sandwich, planning on sodomizing the boy as soon as he passes out. Baker plays Bill so well that we actually feel bad for him when the boy initially tells Bill he doesn't want the sandwich. This subplot may seem out of place in a comedy, but Solondz utilizes it well to create a lethally ironic and darkly funny film. It's not just controversial, it's sincere. Everyone in the movie is just trying to make a connection, on some sick pursuit of happiness...