Synecdoche, New York

This comes across as a Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich, Adaptation) film as directed by David Lynch. Strangely, it’s a Charlie Kaufman film as directed by Charlie Kaufman. Kaufman’s meta gets the beta of him in this story of a theater director’s endless efforts to reduplicate his life in a staged presentation. Spanning 40 years, two continents, three women, four calling birds and a burning house, Synecdoche is initially wonderful, then dark, then repetitive. It still may be one of the best films of the year, but with a little editing, it could have been one of the best films, period. Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Michelle Williams, Samantha Morton and that gnawing feeling you have that you’ll never quite understand who you are, connect with those you love, attain the goals you’ve set or accept the life you’ve been given.