"Bernie" (2011)

"Bernie" (2011) Review:

Sometimes It's Stranger Than Fiction

"Bernie" (2011) is by no means the be all and end all of cinema, has no profound statement, and will most certainly be forgotten by nearly everyone in the film community as on it's surface it feels predictable and kind of hokey. But the amazing part is that the film is in fact part documentary part reenactment.

The film, at first seeming like a mockumentary, is the biography of Bernie Tiede (Jack Black), a ridiculous and seemingly super human mortician (or as he proudly calls himself assistant funeral director) in the small town of Carthage Texas. Bernie, a man with financial problems (mainly he gives away most all of his money) non-maliciously strikes up a friendship with a wealthy widow named Marjorie Nugent (Shirley MacLaine) whom everyone admits is simply evil. Tiede soon finds himself Nugents slave at her Texas mansion then snaps and shoots her four times in the back.
Perhaps the secret to this film's impact is the questionability of the story's validity. When the film begins with interviews, the audiences mind immediately jumps to the classic "The is Spinal Tap" (1984), one of the most famous mockumentaries with interviews helping the story along and perpetuating the image of a nonchalant documentary. Yet that's exactly what the film becomes; a documentary with all Black's acting becoming a reenactment for the actual events that transpired in the late nineties. Gratefully though the film does not use a totally documentary style with shaky shots and interviews with the protagonist and rather looks and feels like a traditional motion picture.
However the main problem with this movie is that the story feels alienating and bizarre beyond belief often leaving it's humor to be found upon reflection rather than with many punchlines. Ultimately this film could have been a short film and had the same impact for, when Black finally shoots Maclaine, the film has already reached the hour ten mark on a hundred minute picture. Yet this is nitpicking what is unique and interesting storytelling. 
Black is totally enjoyable and (thankfully) not given the opportunity to overact which has most certainly failed him in the past. Matthew McConaughey almost seems to cameo as Danny Buck, the state attorney who prosecutes Tiede and seems to fit the part fine yet is not particularly noteworthy. Yet perhaps the finest performance of the film is Shirley MacLaine's. With wit and a sense of moderation, MacLaine attacks the role with total devotion yet does not make Nugent seem unbelievably evil yet rather like the grandmother you wish would die sooner rather than later.
As the credits begin and the film describes the real life crime and shows actual photos of Nugent and Tiede on vacation and brings the audience to the question, outside of a film, how could a man put up with an awful woman than kill her without confronting her. As one townsperson said "I guess there was more evil in her than good in him," yet there is no definitive answer. Yet despite the fact that most of the plot has been divulged (as it was in nearly every review) that doesn't matter. Rather it is the substance of the film which speaks loudly as well as the story and provides for a good portion of the drama. And to be honest, as a last thought, that's a damn good one if I've ever seen it. Was the film good, somewhat but again, not earth shattering yet it is completely worth watching which is exactly what this film was meant to do.

Stars: 8/10