Review: Cautionary fable ‘The Ticket’ ultimately loses its focus
A blind man spontaneously regains his sight in “The Ticket,” a hushed drama so meticulously crafted that it almost masks how insubstantial it is.
“Legion” star Dan Stevens plays James, blind since childhood. Thanks to a medical anomaly, he wakes one morning with his vision restored and promptly vows to become a better breadwinner for his down-to-earth wife, Sam (Malin Akerman), and their tween son (Skylar Gaertner). More telling is the way he regards himself in the mirror while slicking back his scruffy hair.
At the predatory real estate company where James was one of several sightless employees, he rises from the phone bank to the executive suite, devising kinder, gentler ways to prey on debt-ridden homeowners. He turns away from Sam, alienates a blind friend (Oliver Platt) and sets his romantic sights on a sleek colleague (Kerry Bishé).
Directed by Ido Fluk from a screenplay he wrote with Sharon Mashihi, the film is sensitively observed, its performances convincingly understated. But it rapidly devolves into a standard, and increasingly unfocused, story of materialism and greed. The title derives from an old joke that serves as the story’s belabored metaphor, repeated several times and always sorely in need of a little Borscht Belt energy.
Stevens lends nuance to the role, but the truth is that James is shallow before, during and after his transformation into a ruthless hotshot. This cautionary fable offers far less than meets the eye.
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‘The Ticket’
Not rated
Running time: 1 hour, 39 minutes
Playing: Laemmle’s Monica Film Center, Santa Monica
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