Roger Dodger
Review by Clint Morris
 Campbell
Scott is Roger Swanson, or ‘Roger Dodger’ as his
estranged sister calls him.
He’s a frenetic advertising copywriter who seems to
think he knows the functionality of the modern day woman,
and how to pick her up more than any man walking the New York
Streets.
When his nerdish 16-year-old nephew, Nick (Jesse Eisenberg)
pays him a visit, he finally has someone to share that knowledge
with.
Over one eventful night, Rodger will pass on his holy grail
of knowledge to the young innocent, hoping, by dawn, that
he will have turned his drippy relative into an un-virginal
sleaze.
Relying heavily on narrative more than a quick pace and dramatics,
Dylan Kidd’s Rodger Dodger is quite a movie –
sharing similarities with Swingers and Scent of
a Woman, while invitingly adding it’s own spin on
the Battle of the Sexes.
For a while there it looks like debut director Kidd is pushing
another ‘coming of age’ story upon us, until he
does a total 360, realising he simply wants to roll with a
‘this is how it is’ style gimmick.
As Roger, Campbell Scott is a revelation.
Funny, amiable and disgustingly pig headed. Roger is the
kind of man we should instantly dislike, but, because Scott
plays him with such charm and instant affability, it's impossible
not to root for Roger.
Jesse Eisenberg also gives a welcome performance as a typical
high school nerd so endearingly dorky, you've got to feel
sorry for him. But most surprisingly, Elizabeth Berkley (Showgirls)
and Jennifer Beals are fantastic, smart, and alluring interpretations
of Nick's would-be conquests.
Kidd received a bit of backlash for this film’s ‘shaky
camera’ style of filming, but in some respects, it works
for the movie because it gets you closer to the action –
making you feel as if you’re actually sitting in a room
with the hurried-but-fascinating Roger.
One suspect’s most of the folks that pointed out this
shaky camera moment were just searching for a fault, because
for a debut feature, director Kidd has shaped something inspired.
3.5 out of 5
Roger Dodger
Australian release: Thursday March 13
Cast: Campbell Scott, Jesse Eisenberg, Isabella Rossellini,
Elizabeth Berkley, Jennifer Beals.
Director: Dylan Kidd.
Website: N/A
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