This third reunion of Sofia Coppola and Bill Murray feels like a return to the loose nature of Lost in Translation, their previous immense success, and in many ways for me On the Rocks was just as successful as that brilliant film. In Murray and Coppola’s other piece of work A Very Murray Christmas, the Netflix Christmas special that’s a personal favourite of mine, Murray (playing himself) finds an upset Rashida Jones mid jilting on her wedding day. The scene they share in this light and wonderful special is a great feat of humour and utterly undeniable charm on Murray’s behalf. Coppola has clearly saw the chemistry that I saw in that scene because she has now built an entire film around it, the wonderfully wry and frankly delightful On the Rocks.

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The set-up’s simple; Rashida Jones’s Laura starts contemplating thoughts about the possibility of her husband (Marlon Wayans as Dean) having an affair with a new work colleague and ends up on a birthday week adventure though New York and Mexico with her father (Bill Murray as Felix). Wayans is brilliant as the walking talking macguffin of the film, coming in and out always to dig himself into a deeper hole, not that he of course knows that’s what he’s doing. Coppola in her writing and Wayans in his performance almost revel in the fact of making Dean look just about as guilty as humanly possible. Rashida Jones is marvellous as Laura, bringing elements of passivity and strength to a character who is simply trying to make the best of many situations and is being strung along by a father whose almost doing his best to lead her in the wrong direction. For me however the underlying subtext is that as much as Felix loves his daughter and cares for her, and longs to help her if Dean really is out adultering, it becomes rather clear that Felix is just making the most of the time that he can get with his daughter whilst her husband is away, whether he be working or gallivanting. The film certainly wouldn’t work without Murray as Felix and it’s rather clear that the film’s role has been moulded for him. I would certainly be surprised if it turned out not to be directly written with Murray on the mind. The film plays on all of his strengths and Coppola knows exactly where those strengths are and how to make the most out of them. Murray is hilarious, heartfelt and shockingly touching in a conversation in Mexico that suddenly comes out of nowhere and tears out your heart. Jenny Slate, who is in actress that I have always unfortunately found a little annoying, has her possible annoyances maximised and utilised by Coppola brilliantly in a few sparring exchanges bringing her character and the context of Laura’s life to us in a matter of a few brief moments.

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I think a lot of the negative critical opinion is based around it being a “slow nothing movie” and although the arguments about pace are almost wholly unwarranted, as for me the film flew by, I can kind of see the “nothing” angle. On the surface all of the arcs in the film come to nothing. The film ends with our characters more or less in the same place as they began, however it is clear to me through the writing and performances the level to which the experiences have changed our leads. Coppola’s directing is also not slight, nor has it ever been, with multiple choices in the earliest moments of the film bringing us into the world with minimal set-ups and brief montages. There is such a brisk and wonderful economy to this film that I found deeply, deeply refreshing. The movie moved for me at a wonderfully precise pace, building to its subtle climax effortlessly. The score of the film was composed by the band Phoenix and befits the nature of the New York night beautifully, aswell as many other moments of musical material beyond the score that similarly fits the film tremendously well. Both New York and Mexico are shot beautifully by Phillipe Le Sourd who manages to fill the visually darkest nights in both vistas with effective and minute life, many times in the film Coppola and Le Sourd just stand back and show us how beautiful these places really are, and why not? Afterall it only brings us further into the worlds of our characters who admire these places so much. The editing of Sarah Flack cements the quality of the film with the aforementioned wonderful brief montages and combination of stark wide shots and intimate close-ups. Coppola really has managed here to make a film that perfectly reflects those minor moments in our lives that feel like the grandest and scariest times of all. Many have commented on this as Coppola’s “lightest” film and although I think its marginally reductive, it does reflect the marvellous liminality of the time that we jump in and out of the lives of these wonderful people and their sometimes funny, sometimes heartfelt, sometimes deeply moving conversations.

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A purely delightful 8/10, in my opinion nowhere near worthy of some of the negative press. If your idea of a great film isn’t investing with two interesting characters brilliantly played, with wonderfully written dialogue and intriguing small twists and payoffs – then sure, maybe skip it. But if that sounds appealing to you and frankly I don’t know why it wouldn’t, then certainly watch this film. A terrific lead role for Jones and a more than marvellous addition to the cannons of both Coppola and Murray. For me at least the film was nothing short of a pure delight.

P.S. What I would give to have a Bombay Martini with Bill Murray. Not really a Post Script note on the film, but more so a wish. Hell, I’d like to have any drink with Mr Murray. Hell, skip the drink, I’d just like to meet him once. God, I love you Mr Murray!

- Thomas Carruthers