Some stars dip their toe into directing waters. Others dive in like Greg Louganis.
Angelina Jolie Pitt has in recent years turned into the latter. The star has worked on four live-action movies since 2011, and three of them have been as a director. Four years ago came the Balkan drama “In the Land of Blood and Honey,” while last year brought World War II memoir adaptation “Unbroken.”
On Thursday at AFI Fest, Jolie Pitt unveiled the last of this trifecta, “By the Sea,” a romantic drama she wrote, directed, produced and starred in opposite husband Brad Pitt, who also produced.
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The 1970s-set marital drama, which Universal will release next week, centers on retired dancer Vanessa and blocked-writer Roland as they take a trip to the Maltese Coast hoping to recharge their romance. The two are sinking as much into dependency as codependency (she’s a pill popper, he’s a drinker). Neither of them seems able to get out of their rut.
That is, until midway through, when the couple begin spying on the happy newlyweds in the next hotel room via a hole in their shared wall. Though Vanessa and Roland are animated by envy, the through-the-peephole viewing becomes a kind of unspoken reminder of what once was, and the bonding it offers gives them a chance to get it back (maybe).
After the screening in Hollywood on Thursday night, the snark was flying, and understandably so. The movie is a heavy-lidded affair, channeling the spirit of European melodrama that one doesn’t see much these days, while also paying homage to some other midcentury touchstones; the idea of an ennabling couple heading to the coast to lament their not-exactly-terrible lives could also be described as an attempt to update a certain Blake Edwards movie, a kind of “Days of Whine and Roses.”
It’s also impossible to detach the autobiography from the whole enterprise. And as much as there’s something reassuring to imagine that a celebrity couple fights and struggles just like the rest of us, their high-class problems make it hard to muster the identification a story like this requires.
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Actor Christian Bale takes pictures and signs autographs with fans lining Hollywood Boulevard before walking the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on the closing night of AFI.
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Actors Lily Rabe, left, and Hamish Linklater giggle on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short.”
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Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale and other cast members leave the theater after director Adam McKay introduced the premiere of “The Big Short” on closing night of the AFI festival.
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Actor Steve Carell joins Melissa Leo on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on closing night of the AFI Fest.
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Actress Karen Gillan does her thing on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on the closing night of the festival.
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Actor Ryan Gosling is captured on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on the closing night of the festival.
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From left, actors Ryan Gosling, Marisa Tomei and Steve Carell get chatty on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on the closing night of the AFI festival.
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Actor Finn Wittrock is captured on the red carpet for the premiere of “The Big Short” on the closing night of the festival.
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Will Smith poses with fans near the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, where he’d arrived Tuesday for the AFI Fest premiere of his film “Concussion.”
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Will Smith, with producer Giannina Facio and her partner, writer/producer/director Ridley Scott, have a laugh before the premiere of “Concussion” at AFI FEST 2015.
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Actor Will Smith poses for photos and signs autographs for fans lined up along Hollywood Boulevard on Tuesday.
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Dr. Julian Bailes, former team physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers, greets former NFL lineman Leonard Marshall, right, before the premiere of “Concussion.”
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Actor Will Smith, right, with director Peter Landesman on the red carpet.
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Musician Leon Bridges, left, and actor Will Smith before the premiere of “Concussion.”
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Actress Sara Lindsey on the red carpet for the premiere of “Concussion” at AFI Fest on Tuesday.
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Actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Hollywood for the premiere of “Concussion.”
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Actors Mike O’Malley, left, and Will Smith on the red carpet for their film “Concussion.”
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Actors Mike O’Malley, from left, David Morse, Sara Lindsey, Will Smith, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Albert Brooks pose before the premiere of their film “Concussion.”
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Sports broadcaster Bob Costas, second from left, greets actor Will Smith, right, on the red carpet.
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Actresses Gugu Mbatha-Raw, left and Sara Lindsey attend the Sony after-party following the premiere of “Concussion” at AFI Fest 2015.
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Actor Will Smith and Dr. Bennet Omalu, whom Smith portrays in “Concussion,” attend the Sony after-party at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel.
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Producer and director Ridley Scott borrows a camera to take a group photo at the “Concussion” after-party.
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Actor Ewan McGregor speaks to reporters before the film “Last Days in the Desert” at AFI Fest 2015 on Wednesday.
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Actor Ewan McGregor, left, and director Rodrigo Garcia pose for photos before showing their film “Last Days in the Desert” on Wednesday at AFI Fest.
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The cast and four of the Chilean miners whose stories are told in the “The 33” pose on the red carpet before the film’s premiere at AFI Fest.
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Mario Gomez, from left, Luis Urzua, Edison”’Elvis” Peña and Juan Carlos Aguilar at the Hollywood premiere of “The 33,” the film that tells their story of being trapped in a Chilean mine.
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Actress Juliette Binoche before the premiere of “The 33” at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
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Actor Jacob Vargas, right, poses with Edison “Elvis” Peña, the Chilean miner he portrayed in “The 33.”
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A model of the rescue capsule used to save the Chilean miners is displayed at the premiere of “The 33.”
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Actor Antonio Banderas, who stars in “The 33,” and Nicole Kimpel on the red carpet at AFI Fest in Hollywood.
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Juliette Binoche and Antonio Banderas before the premiere of “The 33.”
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“The 33” actresses Kate Del Castillo, from left, Cote de Pablo and Juliette Binoche on the red carpet.
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Author and former Los Angeles Times reporter Hector Tobar on the red carpet for “The 33.” The film was adapted from Tobar’s book “Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free.”
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Oscar De La Hoya poses for photos before the premiere of “The 33” at AFI Fest.
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Sylvester Stallone and his wife, Jennifer Flavin, at “The 33” oremiere.
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Sylvester Stallone, right, gets a hug from Chilean miner Luis Urzua as actor Lou Diamond Phillips watches.
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Actress Cote de Pablo, center, poses with Chilean miners Luis Urzua, from left, Juan Carlos Aguilar, Mario Gomez and Edison “Elvis” Peña and producer Mike Medavoy before the premiere of “The 33.”
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The cast of the film “Mustang” and director Deniz Gamze Ergüven, far right, arrive to be photographed at AFI Fest.
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Sony Pictures Classics’s copresidents and cofounders, Michael Barker, left and Tom Bernard, pose with Hungarian director László Nemes, center, before the showing of his film “Son of Saul” on Monday.
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Hungarian director László Nemes, left, and his lead actor Geza Ršhrig before the showing of their film, “Son of Saul,” at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
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Director Michael Moore arrives Nov. 7 for the showing of his new film, “Where to Invade Next,” at AFI Fest 2015 at Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
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Director Michael Moore walks the red carpet before showing his new film, “Where to Invade Next,” on Nov. 7 at Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.
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Actress Sally Kirkland poses on the red carpet before the showing of director Michael Moore’s “Where to Invade Next” on Nov. 7.
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Actor Richard Chamberlain poses for photographers on the red carpet before a showing of Michael Moore’s “Where to Invade Next” on Nov. 7.
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Actor Sam Waterston walks the red carpet before the showing of director Michael Moore’s “Where to Invade Next” on Nov. 7 in Hollywood.
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Director Michael Moore introduces “Where to Invade Next” at AFI Fest 2015.
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Producer Carl Dean, left, director Michael Moore and producer Tia Lessin introduce their new film, “Where to Invade Next,” at AFI Fest 2015 in Hollywood on Nov. 7.
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Movie fans line up along North McCadden Place in Hollywood for a showing of Michael Moore’s “Where to Invade Next” at AFI Fest 2015.
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Gr’mur Hakonarson, director of the Icelandic film “Rams,” is photographed before heading into the theatre to introduce his film at the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres on the second night of AFI Fest 2015. There are 127 films from 45 countries showing in this year’s festival.
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Grimur Hakonarson, director of the Icelandic film “Rams,” does a brief interview with AFI Fest staff before introducing his film at the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres on the second night of the AFI Fest 2015 in Hollywood.
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Rafaella Biscayn, left, Sarah Bigle and Andrew Godoski have fun in a photobooth at an AFI alumni party at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on the second night of the AFI Fest 2015.
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Director Nicholas Hytner, left, and actor Alex Jennings arrive to introduce “The Lady in the Van.”
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Movie fans wait -- some seemingly a little longer than others -- for director Nicholas Hytner and actor Alex Jennings to arrive and introduce their film, “The Lady in the Van.”
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Director Nicholas Hytner, left, and actor Alex Jennings introduce “The Lady in the Van.”
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The room was full for an AFI alumni party at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on the second night of AFI Fest 2015 in Hollywood.
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Attendees of the AFI alumni reception at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel mix and mingle.
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A couple of attendees of the filmmaker AFI alumni reception share a moment away from the crowd.
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A person checks her phone outside the penthouse suite of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel during a filmmaker welcome party that also previewed virtual-reality technologies.
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The scene outside the penthouse suite of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel during a filmmaker welcome party.
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Volunteer Cecilia Martin watches virtual-reality content, including content created by Google, during a filmmaker welcome party in the penthouse suite of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.
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People watch virtual-reality content during a filmmaker welcome party.
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People watch virtual-reality content produced by Vrse.Works.
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HOLLYWOOD, CA--NOVEMBER 05, 2015--Actress, writer, producer and director Angelina Jolie Pitt and her husband, actor Brad Pitt, pose on the red carpet for the opening night premiere of their new film, “By The Sea,” at AFI FEST 2015, presented by Audi, at TCL Chinese 6 Theatres, in Hollywood, CA, November 05, 2015. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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Actors Melvil Poupaud and Melanie Laurent, left, pose alongside actress-writer-producer and director Angelina Jolie Pitt and her husband, actor Brad Pitt, on the red carpet for the premiere of “By the Sea” in Hollywood.
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Angelina Jolie Pitt and Brad Pitt walk the red carpet.
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Angelina Jolie Pitt answers questions.
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Festival director Jacqueline Lyanga poses on the red carpet before the premiere of “By the Sea.”
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Angelina Jolie Pitt and Brad Pitt draw a crowd, as usual.
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Actress Melanie Laurent of “By the Sea.”
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Melanie Laurent, left, and Angelina Jolie Pitt talk backstage at the premiere of “By the Sea.”
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An iPhone shows director Angelina Jolie Pitt speaking on the red carpet.
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Brad Pitt greets Donna Langley, chairman of Universal Pictures, on the red carpet for the premiere of “By the Sea.”
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Brad Pitt greets fans at the AFI Fest.
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Fans hope to get autographs from Angelina Jolie Pitt and Brad Pitt.
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Angelina Jolie Pitt greets fans.
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Jacqueline Lyanga, AFI Fest director, introduces Angelina Jolie Pitt, right.
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Angelina Jolie Pitt waits alongside Brad Pitt, before introducing her film, “By the Sea,” at AFI Fest.
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Angelina Jolie Pitt walks up to introduce “By the Sea.”
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times) Still, at least some of the backlash seems attributable to that same roman a clef fact. Jolie Pitt is so front-and-center, in every way, that the film almost dares pundits to take shots. You could easily imagine a director of unknown name and provenance making essentially the same movie, with different faces, and earning a much more measured response.
The truth is that for all the backlash Jolie Pitt has drawn for her movies, her directing chops are solid. They weren’t bad in “Blood and Honey,” they were respectable in “Unbroken” and they’re better here. Sure, there are some questionable moments (some quick-cut flashbacks won’t be studied in any AFI classes), but as directorial efforts go, whether it’s long shots of the coast or close-ups of the couple’s pained faces, it’s a perfectly worthy affair.
The real issue lie with the script. A tortured-couple tale is a dicey choice, given how often it’s been done and how easily it lends itself to cliche and/or histrionics. But there were still ways to redeem it -- for instance, with some surprise or some comedy. The movie comes alive in the moments when Vanessa and Roland are peering through the Tom & Jerry hole in the baseboards, the two of them sitting on the floor, both aware of the ridiculousness of their actions and needing it just the same. Yet there’s not nearly enough of those scenes, and what there is doesn’t get developed in a satisfying way, as a more polished screenwriter would certainly have known to do.
It’s in this on-the-page way that the movie suffers, as did, come to think of it, “Blood and Honey” and “Unbroken” (the latter of which Jolie Pitt didn’t write but did signed on to direct despite the script not including arguably the most interesting aspects of its hero’s story.)
Jolie Pitt is one of the most famous celebrities in the world. And her filmmaking can suffer from one of the most common maladies of really famous celebrities in the world making movies: a lack of outside oxygen, or opinions. The celebrity card cuts two ways: Jolie Pitt has the clout to get a movie like this greenlit, something few can do. But because she has all that clout, she doesn’t need to allow other experienced voices into the room (who would?).
Yet those voices are necessary. Some of them would have advised some fundamental script revisions. Many would have offered tonal shifts, or at least something to scramble the movie’s dramatic key.
Jolie Pitt has said she’s not good at comedy. Judging by this movie’s voyeur scenes, she might be that she’s better at them than she realizes.
As the star has embarked on this new phase, she’s now made three movies in four years. One is about a gruesome emotional war, and the other two are about wars of the real kind. You can’t help admiring her seriousness of purpose. And you can only wish she was a little less serious.
Twitter: @ZeitchikLAT
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TRAILER: ‘By The Sea’
