Do I Hear A Waltz? (Film Review: Take This Waltz)

At first, "Take This Waltz" is one of those movies that will take your patience. It is slow, and you don't always gets its point. But almost an hour through it, I stopped trying and just gave in to it, and I just gave in to the wonderful performance of Michele Williams. Is there a better, braver young actress working today? She reminds me, brevity wise, of a young Nicole Kidman. Like Nicole, her artistic choices can at times be puzzling, but you always admire her for it, and their performances always come out unscathed even if their films don't measure up. She plays Margo, a woman in a five year marriage to Lou, played with quiet intensity by Seth Rogan (I think it's the first time I remember seeing him in a very adult performance) They are caught in a rut, and Margo, while on a business trip in Nova Scotia, meets Daniel. They meet cute, then realize that they love across the street from each other. She then goes on an emotional and intellectual exploration. This exploration is played with both wide eyed innocence and knowing by Williams. She has a do-good face, and she realizes her decision is tough, but she plays it so well that you don't actually realize that she knows how tough it is, but then you understand that she does take it to heart. It really is a simple decision - will she or won't she - but the movie doesn't make it easy for her - and for you. When finally something snaps, the decision is quick, and the pay-off can be slight. I like the film, but it also makes me mad. I don't know if, in the end, I sympathize with the characters I am supposed to be sympathizing to. But then again, that may be the whole point of the movie - one can not judge these characters as they are real. They are not dancers in a waltz, where every step should be perfect - they are just dancing to the tune.