Juliet, Naked Synopsis: Annie is stuck in a long-term relationship with Duncan – an obsessive fan of obscure rocker Tucker Crowe. When the acoustic demo of Tucker’s hit record from 25 years ago surfaces, its discovery leads to a life-changing encounter with the elusive rocker himself.
In Juliet, Naked, Annie (Rose Byrne) is the unfulfilled and long-suffering girlfriend of Duncan (Chris O’Dowd), a professor who spends most of his free time running a website and shrine to Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke), an indie rock star who disappeared from the public eye in the ’90s and has stoked years of fan theories and discussion over his fate. Duncan’s Tucker Crowe fandom borders on obsessive, and when he receives an acoustic demo of Crowe’s album, Juliet, Annie decides to write a scathing review of the stripped-down music on Duncan’s fansite.
Crowe, who has visited the fansite, sends Annie a message agreeing with her negative review, thus setting off a chain of ‘pen pal-esque’ emails where the two exchange personal, intimate details of their lives and their acknowledgment that maybe they’ve let the best years slip through their hands.
Rose Byrne shines as Annie, a woman seemingly stuck in an unsatisfying relationship and eager for something more. She’s sensible and kind, with subtle humor and strength that had me thinking on more than one occasion that was too good for either leading man.
Given his lack of paternal desire and instinct with his many children, Ethan Hawke could have easily come across as arrogant and unsympathetic. Still, while he understands there’s no way to hit the ‘reset button’ in life, he’s trying to improve, even while he continues to misstep.
He and Byrne’s interactions never felt forced or unnatural, nor was there any quirky meet cute, unless you count Tucker responding to her negative review of his music. In fact, their first face-to-face comes with a heart attack and a cringeworthy, uncomfortable array of Tucker’s children and exes that makes you question Annie’s decision to answer the phone the next time Tucker calls her, which he questions as well.
As for Chris O’Dowd, he carries most of the comedic weight here, both obnoxious and yet uncomfortably relatable as a man who has let his love of an artist consume him to the point of pretentiousness. I facepalmed a few times during his conversations with Annie, especially after an indiscretion led to their relationship’s end. Yet, O’Dowd still has enough charisma and charm that I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to his character.
The movie deals painfully with the concept that you should never meet your heroes because they are always bound to disappoint. While Duncan is a bit of a knob, you can’t help but sympathize and agree when he tells Tucker that “art isn’t the for the artist any more than water is for the plumber.”
Avoiding the typical tropes and (most) contrivances, Juliet, Naked is a warm but subtle romantic comedy with an ambiguous yet satisfying ending. The cast is fabulous, especially the supporting roles, most notably Ayoola Smart (excellent as Tucker’s daughter, Lizzy) and Lily Brazier (Annie’s lesbian sister who gave me a Honey Thacker vibe from Notting Hill). One of my favorite films of 2018 and gave me the desire to relive High Fidelity soon.
Watched: 12/02/2018
Notable Song: Juliet by Ethan Hawke
