Beatriz at Dinner

I'm a big fan of actors trying something different. Dramatic actors tipping their toes into comedies, or an actor breaking away from their usual persona. It doesn't always work, but when it does you get the thrill of seeing something new or a world of possibilities. Which is why seeing previews for a soft-spoken Salma Hayek verbally sparring with an aloof John Lithgow got my attention. And if there are some socially relevant themes to be had? All the better.

Hayek plays the titular Beatriz, a masseuse and alterantive medicine practitioner visiting a rich client. But when her car breaks down and requires a tow truck, her client Kathy (Connie Britton) takes pity on her and invites her to stay for dinner. Only trouble is, the dinner is with a land developer named Doug (John Lithgow), and he and Beatriz are on a collision course.

Beatriz at Dinner is a movie I wanted to enjoy more. I say enjoy because the movie isn't meant to be entertaining as much as it is an honest depiction of how two disparate people would interact in a group setting. Short answer: very awkwardly, but not directly confrontational. No one yells or throws punches. It's just a lot of laughing off uncomfortable moments and casual excuses. The outbursts that do occur are relatively muted. It's a much more realistic approach, but that doesn't mean the audience will find it satisfying.

What the movie does do a great job of is presenting just how removed Beatriz and men like Doug are from understanding one another. Beatriz is already an outlier due to her class and race, but her profession and holistic approach to take things a step further. Not only do Kathy's guests not share her experience, they cannot understand her worldview. There's a masterful scene in which Beatriz begins speaking about spirituality as sincerely as possible...only to have the subject abruptly changed to a Miley Cyrus style celebrity that had a 4chan-esque nude photo hack and release.

And our other end of the dial is Doug, a man who is so removed from worry in his day to day life, thanks to his wealth, he approaches everything callously. He commits a series of microaggressions against Beatriz, but is never truly corrected by the other guests because he holds the purse-strings to their upcoming project. He makes inappropriate jokes to kill tension. Nothing Beatriz can say will harm him. His wealth has made him bulletproof and he acts accordingly.

This distance is further conveyed by the difference between the homes, clothes, and makeup. Hayek's Beatriz lives in a small colored house, wears clothes similar to the uniforms of Kathy's staff, and wears minimal makeup. Contrasted between Kathy's gated community, the bright colors and fancy dresses of the women, and the extragent hair and makeup, Beatriz sticks out even before she starts talking.

Hayek and Lithgow turn in great role in this movie. I've yet to see Hayek deliver such a reserved performance, but she nails it. She's sincere when she talks about alternative medicine, never intentionally impolite, but still can't quite read the room. And Lithgow has the air of a man you're meant to hate. He's made a career out of playing cartoonish arrogant baffoons, but this is a different animal. Doug is insensitive and prejudiced, but he's also easy-going and brushes off the tensions everyone else is worried about. Life's too good to be upset for this guy, and Lithgow plays that perfectly.

That said the movie doesn't have the weight I was hoping for. Some of the marketing may have oversold it as a perfect time capsule of the political climate, but this movie is too reserved to truly match the modern discourse. It's a reflection on disaparate worlds and worldviews colliding, for better or worse.

I'm also not a huge fan of the pacing. The film is barely over eighty minutes and yet it feels like the movie has run out of things to say by the hour mark. Is this were a play there would be a personal tete a tete with Beatriz and Doug, which again may not be realistic, but is narratively satisfying.

Beatriz at Dinner gets a soft recommendation. It doesn't like up to the promise of its premise, but the script is still solid enough to entertain and the central performances are excellent. Check it out.