THE LOOKOUT

 "Hi. My name is Chris. I have suffered a head injury."

If you're thinking The Lookout is just another heist movie, get ready for a pleasant surprise. From the startling opening sequence to the quietly perfect ending, this movie is a masterpiece of character development, crafty plotting, and originality. It is further complemented by the truly superb performances of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Jeff Daniels, and makes for a rare treat on Hollywood's bland cinematic menu.

Chris Pratt (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is on top of the world when he takes his friends to see the fireflies one dark summer night. He's a star hockey player from a well-to-do family, and he doesn't have a care in the world as he zips down the country road in his convertible. With his girlfriend by his side and two friends perched atop the backseat, Chris can think of no better way to show off the fireflies than to turn out his headlights. He has no idea there's a combine stopped in the road ahead or that his life (as well as the lives of his three companions) is about to change forever.

We then catch up with Chris four years later. Having suffered a severe head injury in the accident, he struggles with the most basic daily tasks. Just forming a sentence or distinguishing a garlic press from a can opener can become a major ordeal, and it doesn't help that his injury has caused issues with disinhibition and anger as well. He's forever locking his keys in the car, so he carries a spare key in his shoe, and in his wallet he carries a card explaining, "Hi. My name is Chris. I have suffered a head injury."

For the most part, the residents of his hometown are sympathetic and treat him accordingly—so much so that I almost started to covet his little card. It would be the greatest Get Out of Jail Free card of all time—IF you didn't actually have a head injury. There are plenty of occasions when people prey upon Chris's disability, and it's easy enough for a sleazy bartender to short him his change or for a conman to talk him into a bank heist.

Though Chris has a loyal friend and roommate in Lewis (Jeff Daniels), he can't help resenting the loss of life as he knew it. He and Lewis were paired by the Life Skills Center, and their friendship only seems to highlight their collective limitations. Though smart, loyal, and witty, Lewis is blind, a bit of a big mouth, and old enough to be Chris's father. Chris is painfully aware that his affluent family looks down on his defects, and they do everything in their power to avoid the elephant in the room. Perhaps worst of all, Chris can never repair the damage done by the accident. Not only did his friends in the backseat lose their lives, but his girlfriend lost her leg.

And so it goes. Chris attends classes at the Life Skills Center, hangs out with Lewis, and works as a night janitor at the local bank. Lewis has big plans to open a diner with Chris, but getting a loan may prove difficult, and who wants to hang out with Lewis when he's always flirting with random waitresses and saying embarrassing things like, "Gimp's night out!"?

"I'm not a gimp," hisses Chris, "and it's not even night."

Lew's self-deprecating humor is definitely one of his better qualities, but Chris is sick and tired of going down with him. Understandably, he's in a vulnerable state when he meets his new friend Gary (Matthew Goode) at the local bar. With Gary comes Luvlee (Isla Fisher), a winsome young woman who remembers Chris's glory days. Chris is easily wooed by her charm, and pretty soon he's feeling pretty smart. His conscience tells him to run the other way when Gary suggests that they knock over the bank, but deep down he feels he deserves something better than life has given him.

Gary is right: Chris's father won't give him money, even though he's rolling in it, and why should he mess around with some hokey little business venture like "Lew's Your Lunch" when the vault is right there? The only person standing in their way is Deputy Doughnut, a sweet local cop who stops by the bank every night to check on Chris. He's got a pregnant wife and a Mayberry sensibility, but what's the harm in stepping on him for one big payoff?

Unsurprisingly, things quickly get out of hand once Chris agrees to be the lookout in the bank heist. Will his head betray him at this crucial moment, or will he somehow pull it together to save his only true friend and do what's right? It's certainly worth watching this clever and engrossing film to find out.

DVD NOTES

Extra features include the Making-Of Featurette "Sequencing The Lookout", the thoughtful "Behind the Mind of Chris Pratt" featuring an insightful interview with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and audio commentary with director Scott Frank and director of photography Alar Kivilo.