Review: Factotum (2005)
The summary on the Netflix sleeve that accompanies “Factotum” says the following: “Based on Charles Bukowski’s semi-autobiographical novel, this edgy drama centers on a rebel writer with absolutely no desire to live a conventional life. A rootless jack-of-all-trades, Henry Chinaski (Matt Dillon) works in the factories and warehouses of Los Angeles and gets by just fine as long as he can indulge in his four primary loves — women, drinking, gambling and writing. Lili Taylor, Marisa Tomei and Fisher Stevens co-star.”
All of this is technically true, but its misleading, and implies that “Factotum” is another of those, glory of the sexy, drunk, unemployed writer movies, that, while an appealing fantasy, (especially for an unpublished writer) is generally bullshit. Most unpublished writers look more like the guy who works at the laundry mat down the street than Matt Dillon, and they aren’t drifting in and out of beds belonging to women who look like Marisa Tomei, they are probably living with their mothers. These films generally pretend to be about flying in the face of convention, rejecting the usual, the safe, the staid, in the pursuit of art, but they are really more about the fantasy of not having to work, getting laid, being on a perpetual vacation only with the self-congratulation that comes with being a “writer”.
“Factotum” is so much better because it acknowledges all of that hypocrisy, and because Chinaski is aware of it himself, he doesn’t ask for pity, and so we begin to root for him, and laugh (in a black comic way) at the ways he perpetually screws up. Matt Dillon is terrific, I’ve never gotten why he hasn’t become more of a force in the industry, though it may be because his looks come with a danger that feels legitimate, and may scare people off a little (he seems uncomfortable in studio fluff). The film has an appealing, rambling vibe that reminded me a bit of the even better Steve Buscemi movie “Trees Lounge”, which was equally honest about its lead character. Watch them both over the weekend and feel better about yourself. A little superiority can go a long way.
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